Love Will Find Its Way
by bloodyhell-ronald
Summary: There are many ways how the Gryffindor Rose & the Slytherin Scorpius could have fallen in love. And this is just one of it. Because actually, they have a lot in common.
1. Surname Associations

It wasn't until that very day in History of Magic in fifth year that Rose started to see him differently than before. Or rather, to see _him_ and not the bloke her father told her to beat in every possible subject at Hogwarts.

"…and what started the war? Yes, Miss Cheng?"  
>The brunette smiled at the professor, clearing her throat.<br>"A _Malfoy_ started it. If Draco _Malfoy_ wouldn't have put up the Vanishing Cabinets in Hogwarts, the Death Eaters would have never entered and so many people would still be alive. So it is _Malfoy's_ fault lots of people were killed and our parents lost beloved ones."  
>"Think before you speak, bitch."<br>Rose looked up, surprised by actually hearing the voice of Scorpius Malfoy. He hardly said anything but always got remarkably good marks in all of the classes.  
>She turned her attention towards him rather than the piece of paper in front of her on which tiny stickmen were fighting about who could build the best sandcastle.<br>"How do you dare speaking about my father like you know him, like you know what he did and why? How do you dare judging him by what you may have heard or may have read?"  
>The anger in his cold, grey-bluish eyes were hard not to notice as he spoke and stood up.<br>"I am very sorry, Professor, but I simply cannot put up with this sort of shit anymore." Saying it, he grabbed his bag and stormed out of class.  
>Apparently Professor Ginges was shocked by Scorpius' behavior; otherwise the young Slytherin wouldn't have gotten away without a date for detention. Rose, too, was not sure of whether Scorpius reacted the wrong way or just appropriate to what has been said by Tina Cheng.<br>She decided to think about it during lunch, because her hunger was way too loud to be overheard.

"Really, Weasley? A small note? _'Wanna talk about surname-associations after lunch?'_ That is all you could come up with in your brilliantly smart mind?"  
>"Well it worked, didn't it? You are here." Rose crossed her arms in front of her chest, looking him straight in his bright eyes. They were so different from hers. Well, her eyes were brown, of course they were different! But they were so, so different from her father's blue eyes. Cooler, yet not colder. She could see a lot of affection in them. Or maybe she just wished she would, simply to make it easier to bond with Scorpius Malfoy.<br>"I am sure you do not have any problems with surname-associations. Your family name is perfectly perfect, as is your uncle's."  
>"See? You are doing it, too. Come on, Malf…" Rose stopped as she was about to call him by his last name. The look he shot her, the hate, the coldness, the bitterness made her stop.<br>"Scorpius. I am sorry. Come on, I'll find us a secret place where we can talk about it. If you promise me not to tell anybody about it."  
>"Why should I come with you? Why should I trust you? How do I know you are not going to use whatever I say against me at some point in time?"<br>"You are never going to know it unless you try", she smiled at him softly.  
>"You have got a point there…" Scorpius hesitated before he nodded. Only slightly, as if he wouldn't want Rose to notice that he agreed in following her.<br>"Besides, who would I tell about your secret little place? One half of Hogwarts thinks I am too much of the Death Eater and the other half is sure I am not enough of one."  
>Rose frowned but didn't say anything. Thinking about it she realized that she rarely saw Scorpius with others just standing in a group and chatting like she did with her friends. If she met him it was in the library, where he sat in a corner, reading books or scribbling down whatever-he-was-scribbling.<br>"Alright then. I'll show it to you."

On their way to her place, both kept quiet. When Rose suddenly stopped walking and Scorpius nearly bumped into her, he looked around.  
>"Well… this is a nice corridor. It has windows."<br>Rose looked at him, puzzled, before she started to laugh.  
>"Yes. Yes, it does have windows! But I am not here because I wanted to show you the corridor. Silly you!" She chuckled and turned around to face the wall. "I am here to show you this."<br>"Weasley, this is a wall. I am sorry to tell you, but frankly, I have seen many walls in my life and this is not the prettiest one I have ever seen." To his surprise, Rose continued to giggle.  
>"No! Scorpius, really! I don't want to show you a freaking wall or a stupid corridor with windows. I want to show you this." Rose smiled at him before facing the wall again. As soon as he turned away his eyes from her freaky auburn curls, the wall began to move until a door appeared.<br>By the look on his face Rose could tell he has never ever seen it before. She quickly opened the door to let him in and entered right behind the blond boy.  
>"Did your father never tell you about the Room of Requirement? This is where he hid the Vanishing Cabinet."<br>"My father never talks about the war", he muttered and looked around, trying to understand what was in front of him. As he caught Rose's eyes, she smiled gently.  
>"The Room of Requirement always changes in what you need the most. If you need to pee, it is going to be the perfect bathroom. If you want to shag your girlfriend, go ahead, the room will offer you a nice king-size bed or a comfy sofa. I hope you are fine with what I chose for us."<br>Rose sat down on the soft, warm grass, looking up into the dark sky full of sparkling stars, the moon shining on her as Scorpius sat down next to the red-head.  
>"Before we talk, I need to ask something which I hope you will answer honestly."<br>"I try to." Smiling without looking at him, Rose inhaled the smell of sunflowers and fresh grass which was in the air.  
>"Why? Why do you want to talk to me about it? You never made any effort in talking to me."<br>"I know. I never really noticed you. You were always the guy I wanted to beat in class, I wanted to have better marks than you, because that is what my dad told me. On my very first day in Hogwarts or rather while we were still standing on the platform, Dad told me to beat you in every test. I tried to live up to his expectations but never considered talking to you. You were just… you were there. I never thought of you as Draco Malfoy's son, because we never talked about you or him if it wasn't about the war and his role in it. But today… I don't know. Well, I do know, but I am kind of ashamed to say it."  
>"Go on, Rose. It will be a lot easier when you are honest with me."<br>"Well… today it just got clear for me that you are the son of Draco Malfoy, the one who led the Death Eaters to Hogwarts. I never thought of that before. Don't ask me how I could oversee the obvious; I am sort of good at that without even trying." She smiled shyly.  
>"Yeah, I really do not see how you could oversee it. Well, actually, because I do not matter to you. I oversee people I do not care about at all."<br>She winced a little. "That is mean, Scorpius. Are you telling me that I ignore all the people I am not talking to, that I am thinking they aren't existent?"  
>"No. I am telling you that sometimes one does not care for people and sometimes one does. So… you have any surname-related issues?", he asked her to get back to the topic they wanted to talk about, because clearly she wasn't happy with the other one.<br>"Sure I have. I am a Weasley. There are plenty of us. Roxy, Hugo, Fred, Lucy, Molly, Vic, Dominique, Louis… Whenever someone calls the name, all of us who are still at Hogwarts look up. Some people make fun of it, you know. They just say 'Hey, Weasley!' just to see how many of us are turning our heads. As a Weasley you are always a Weasley, part of a family, part of a group and part of a history. And I love my family, I really do! But sometimes… sometimes I wish I'd just be Rose. Do you know what I mean?"  
>"I guess so. At least no-one associates the bad things with your name. You will always be the daughter of war-heroes whereas I will always be the son of Death Eaters, of murderers. They do not see behind it. They do not see that my father did all what he did to protect his family, to save their lives. They do not see that Harry Potter saved him from death because Mr. Potter might have seen the struggle inside my father. They simply do not see anything at all. None of them."<br>"Well I do. You know… you never use contractions."  
>"What?" Scorpius looked at her quizzically. Again today. How did she manage to make him so confused?<br>"You never use contractions. You say 'do not' instead of 'don't'. Why?"  
>"Why did you notice? I mean, it is nothing anyone else ever told me. I do not even realize it myself… maybe because both of my parents speak that way. I do not know it."<br>"It sounds a bit posh", Rose giggled and added – after seeing the displeasing look on his face –"but it's cute. It sounds like proper British English. I like it."  
>"Well, how glad am I that Rose Weasley thinks I am talking cute British English." He rolled his eyes sarcastically, causing the red-head to giggle even more.<br>"You usually don't curse. But you did in History of Magic today. Because you were mad?"  
>"Because I was mad" he nodded and then added "You know, Rose, I kind of like talking to you. You seem to understand what it means to see your parents' names in books about the war, about Hogwarts or about the story of magic."<br>Rose smiled and friendly nudged him.  
>"You are nice to talk to, too, Scorpius Malfoy. We should do it again sometimes, don't you think?"<br>"We should." He smiled at her. It was just a small smile as it was just a small step towards making a friend. But it was a step after all.


	2. Secrets Can Keep It Going On

Rose was rather surprised to find a bird knocking on the girls' dormitory late at night.  
>She didn't expect any letters, although she loved getting ones from all of her relatives. Carefully she opened the window only to allow the rain to be blown straight into her face.<br>"Oh no… poor little birdie!" She quickly took the bird inside and wiped away the drops on her small nose and her long, black eyelashes.  
>"How come I don't know who you are? Or who you belong to? Oh! Roxy might have gotten a new one. You know, her old owl died a few weeks ago. But you aren't an owl. You are an eagle. So not a birdie. A huge, very huge bird. Never mind. Cracker?"<br>Rose held out one of her own crackers for the bird which eagerly nipped it and flew out of the window again, leaving a wet trail on the floor. And a letter. Or better, a note.  
><em>'Fancy meeting me tomorrow night upon the Astronomy Tower at eight? I am sure you find a way to get there even though you should not be around the castle at that point in time. – Scorpius'<em>  
>He hadn't talked to her the last week, despite Rose's thought that both of them would get along quite nicely. It somehow hurt her. She opened up to him and he let her down by ignoring her once more. That wasn't particularly nice, Rose decided.<br>It took her a while to figure out whether she wanted to meet him or not. It took her the whole night, the next morning, all time during class the next day, even during lunch she was still unsure about what to do.  
>To give in to her feeling they could become friends or to be hurt by his actions.<p>

"You are late, Rose Weasley."  
>"How do you know it's me?"<br>"Your shoes have a remarkable sound. An hour, Rose."  
>Until now, the blonde stood at the edge of the tower, face turned towards the world beneath him, his arms behind his back. Even Rose couldn't deny the disappointed sound of his voice as he spoke to her. She immediately felt sorry for letting him wait until nine o'clock. As he turned around, her feelings of guilt grew by every step he made towards her.<br>"You know, you haven't talked to me the whole week but you expect me to jump when you say so? That's not how I work, Scorpius", she snapped at him.  
>"I did not talk to you, this is true." He stopped about three steps before Rose, ran his fingers through his incredibly blond hair. She wondered if he was using a special shampoo to keep it so perfectly light.<br>"I did not talk to you, because I want our friendship to grow between us. I want you to be friends with be before people start giving you weird looks. And, for the record, you asked me not to tell anybody about our meeting."  
>"People already shoot me weird looks."<br>"But not because you are friends with a Malfoy but because you are a Weasley and because you sometimes dress a bit… let us say, you sometimes dress eccentric." Scorpius grinned at her. "I cannot be mad at you, sorry. I did not realize that I should have talked to you. And you look way too adorable to tell you something about not letting friends wait on an Astronomy Tower, where it is windy, cold and rainy."  
>"I'm sorry…", Rose muttered and dropped her eyes, "won't happen again, promise!"<br>"It is alright, Rosie."  
>"Rosie?" She looked up at him again, a puzzled look on her face.<br>"Yeah. I know your cousins call you Rosie and I thought, if I want to be your friend and you want to be mine, I might as well call you by your nickname. Was it wrong?"  
>"No, it's fine." Rose smiled at him softly and looked around in discomfort.<br>"So… why are we here?"  
>"Well, the last time you showed me your favorite place so I thought I show you mine."<br>"Oh."  
>"Oh? All you have to say is '<em>oh<em>'? Really, Rosie?"  
>"I am sorry", she chuckled. He looked just so amusing with his eyes full of disbelieve for what she's just said.<br>"It is just… I am not very keen on the Astronomy Tower."  
>"Why so?"<br>"Iamafraidofheights", Rose quickly mumbled, causing Scorpius to raise one eyebrow.  
>"I am sorry, I did not catch that. Could you repeat it, please?"<br>Rose took a deep breath. This really wasn't easy for her!  
>"I am afraid of heights and hardly anyone besides my closest cousins know it", she then finally admitted to him.<br>"But… you are the keeper of Gryffindor's Quidditch team, are you not?"  
>"Yes, but that doesn't count. When I am on the broom, I feel safe. I don't feel safe here. It is so… open and if you trip you fall and die and there will be a lot of blood and scared kids!"<br>Silence.  
>"Scared kids? Oh Rosie!" Scorpius burst out laughing, shaking his head slightly.<br>"You really _are_ adorable, you know that? Look, we can always go somewhere else. To the lake? Or back in the … what was it? The Room of Requirement?"  
>"Yes, Room of Requirement", she nodded, slightly irritated. His laugh is nice, no doubt! But it was the first time she ever heard him laughing. Maybe she just needed to get used to it.<br>"I would love to go to the Room of Requirement, please."  
>"Alright then, the room it is. But under one condition."<br>She looked up at him. How come she only now realizes how much taller he is than her? Nearly a head taller!  
>"Which will be?"<br>"I get to choose the scenery."  
>Rose smiled widely and nodded. "That won't be a problem. I am curious to see your room."<br>"Just do not expect too much. After all, it will be my first time and I cannot promise that the room will end up even close to what you did with it."  
>"I am sure it will be lovely", she reassured him, giving Scorpius an encouraging smile.<br>"I try my best." He smiled, shyly, before following her back to her secret little place.

"It's bloody lovely, Scorpius! Especially for your first time!"  
>Rose turned around herself to soak in the beautiful scenery he had created.<br>There was a small river floating through perfectly green grass. You could see right to the bottom of it, where white rocks were laying. Smiling, she sat down next to Scorpius on the bench close to the river, taking the cup of tea he offered her.  
>"I'm very proud of you."<br>"Proud of me?" He frowned, but decided to drop the topic. "So, you are afraid of heights, yet you are a very talented young keeper. How long have you been playing for Gryffindor?"  
>"My second year this year. They didn't need a keeper, my cousin Roxy did the job quite nicely but then she left two years ago and I took the opportunity to try out. And it worked! You don't play, do you? Well, at least not in Slytherin's team."<br>"I play at home, with my dad. He has been a seeker and so am I. It is rather easy, I think. I like it. Your cousin Albus is a very talented seeker."  
>"Oh, tell me about it." Rose rolled her eyes and took a sip from her tea. "He's brilliant and knows it! It is the only thing he is proud of about him. And I am very glad for him, I really am! But sometimes he talks about it way too much."<br>"Really? To me, he always seemed to be the shy kind of guy, very talented at seeking and spells."  
>"He is, yes. But after a game… oh well. Everyone has something which is annoying, I guess. And I am fine with his showing-off. James is worse. But I guess, being named James Potter doesn't help keeping his feet on the ground. Whereas Al… Well. Albus Severus isn't a name you want to have", she chuckled, "it sounds stupid. But I love him nevertheless. He is my favorite cousin. Male cousin."<br>"So who is your favorite female cousin then?"  
>"You really wanna know? I am sorry, Scorp, I started babbling about my family again, it always happens to me! That's why people who aren't part of my family hardly talk to me, because I always start talking about them and I do have friends, or course, who are not part of my family, but then know them all so well, so if someone doesn't know them and I still start talking about my family, ti really annoys them, so I am very sorry and I…"<br>"It is fine, Rosie", he interrupted her, smiling lightly, "it is fine."  
>"Alright then. I guess I have to say… hm… that is hard! I love Lily, she is so much fun! Roxy is really cool and I always looked up to her. Vic is so much older than I am. I think Dominique. By the way, did you know that children who play with puzzles in their childhood develop better spatial and math skills later on? Well, anyway…"<br>Scorpius just looked at her, rather confused. He really didn't understand why she just threw random thought into their conversation which had nothing to do with what they were talking about.  
>"Dominique is… she is flawless."<br>"She has Veela-blood, after all."  
>"I know, but beside the Veela, she still is flawless. I can talk to her about everything. She is in year seven now. I am really sad she will be leaving soon but well… maybe she can teach me how to be flawless."<br>"I do not think you need that sort of teaching. Maybe you are flawless but you have not discovered it yet."  
>"But that would mean I am not flawless because my flaw is, that I don't discover my flawlessness."<br>"You have got a point there", he said thoughtfully.  
>"Anyway, Scorp, you are a seeker at home? Never wanted to try out for the team?"<br>Rose turned her head to look at him, surprised by the sudden change of mood in his eyes and his voice, when he began to speak.  
>"I tried. More than once. But I was never good enough. I practiced a lot over the summer. Maybe I will try to get on the team after Christmas break. Some of our seventh-year-players want to focus on studying rather than Quidditch, so I might get a chance."<br>"Oh, I hope you do! Fingers crossed!" She smiled at him with that bright smile usually reserved for her family. Scorpius began to feel warm inside, welcome. As if she really liked him for who he was.  
>"You know, Rosie…" He lightly nudged her side, "I think we need to keep it even. You told me a secret and in return, I will tell you one, too. So, if you are ever using mine against me, I can use yours against you."<br>"You're a bit paranoid from time to time, Scorp. You really are… but I am fine with it. Go ahead, tell me your secret."  
>"I am afraid of seas or rivers or lakes where I cannot see the bottom. Never know what might attack you or on what sort of creature you might step."<br>Rose giggled. "That's a nice secret. We should do it every time we meet up to talk. Tell each other one secret about ourselves. That would be nice. So we get to know each other quickly. And I don't have to meet you on the Astronomy Tower again!" She laughed her gorgeous bright laugh, which made her hazel eyes shine like amber. Did he just notice a small blue spot right in her left eye? He could have sworn it wasn't there before.


	3. A Mother's Thing

It took her a while to realize that someone just knocked on her door.  
>Rose was at home during the Christmas break, fully attached to her favorite book that time in the year. She loved to read <em>Mary Poppins<em> shortly before Christmas, because she used to watch it every 22nd of December when her Dad came home from work. Just him and her, a bit of Daddy-Rosie-time.  
>"May I come in, Rosie?", she finally heard Albus outside her door.<br>"Sure you can, Ally."  
>Her cousin entered and dropped himself on Rose' bed, next to her.<br>"See, Rosie, you got a letter. Written in emerald green", he smirked, "by Malfoy?"  
>"Don't call him that!", Rose hissed, snapped the letter out of his hand, "his name is Scorpius. And he is really nice. How do you even know?"<br>"Well… I realized that you have talked to him lately and I know his handwriting. I have the same subjects with him you have, you know? And I noticed your reaction at the beginning of this year. When we talked about the War."  
>"I felt sorry for him… he's in the same position we are, Ally. Always down to his last name, but it's so different and so much more complicated for him."<br>"Because he is a Malfoy?"  
>"Yes. Not the best surname to have. Anyway, I hope you don't tell anybody. I tried to talk to James about it, but he continued talking about Scorpius' hair and what Harry has told him about Draco Malfoy and stuff… I was bored and threw paper balls at him in the end."<br>Albus chuckled and hugged her cousin. "You know, Rosie, if you like him and if he is nice, I might try to talk to him. He is quite good in Potions, I am not. Maybe next time we have to do group work you and I pair up with him, what do you think?"  
>"Oh, that would be so nice!" She hugged Albus and kissed his cheek. "You're the best cousin ever-ever!"<br>"Ever-ever?", he smiled.  
>"Ever-ever-ever-ever!"<p>

A few days after the beginning of school, Rose decided to take a look at Scorpius.  
>She knew that he was trying to get on the Quidditch team, so she wanted to support her new won friend. Over the break, she had received a letter each day. Every time with a little secret inside it. Rose had to laugh so hard when she got a letter saying his second name was Hyperion, that her dad came up to her room, asking if everything was alright. And then she told him. She told him all the great stories about Scorpius, how he made her laugh without even trying to. She told her dad about the honesty in their friendship which was still growing, about the trouble he had in school.<br>When she had finished, Rose realized that she had just told her dad she was friends with his archenemy's son.  
>"So… you like him as a friend? He is nice to you and all?", Ron had asked carefully.<br>"Yes, Daddy, I really like him. He is so much bloody fun to be with!"  
>"Well… I guess, it's fine then. If you want to invite him over during Easter, you are welcome to do so."<br>And that was it. That was all Ronald Weasley said about his daughter being friends with Scorpius Malfoy. No hate, no _How could you do this to me?_, nothing but … Rose wasn't sure. But she was proud of her daddy. It only showed her how much he must love his little baby-girl. Though she wasn't a baby anymore, of course not!  
>But now, now she was sitting on the tribune, watching a very nervous Scorpius Malfoy trying out for his house's Quidditch team.<br>"Hope you don't mind I followed you."  
>"Not at all, Ally, not at all." She smiled at him und leaned against his shoulder. "We just quietly cheer for him."<br>Rose smiled at his cousin.  
>"I am so bloody glad you're here to support your friend-to-be."<br>"We'll see about that", he nodded, smiling.

"I am going to kill them! I am so going to kill those fuckers! I bet you, I am going to kill them!"  
>"Calm down, Scorp! It's not worth it; please calm down, for Merlin's sake!"<br>Rose sighed and gently pushed Scorpius back onto his bed in the Hospital Wing.  
>"I am going to kill them, I swear!"<br>"Bloody hell, Scorpius! You can't do anything about it! Albus is still with Professor McGonagall, telling her about it. I know, it was really unfair of them to attack you with the Bludgers…"  
>"Really unfair?", he nearly screamed, "really unfair? Rosie, it was a fucking trap! They knew I was going to try out, they planned it all along! And even if they did not know, it was mean and unfair and it was… it was… argh!"<br>Rose giggled and lightly stroked his cheek.  
>"It's gonna be fine, Scorp. Madame Pomfrey will fix your arm in less than two days."<br>"Less than two?" He went paler than he already was. "But I am going to miss the class about Hippogriffs then! I wanted to take part so badly, because Dad always talks about his experience with a Hippogriff in his third year and I am so curious about them… Rosie, I do not want to miss the class…"  
>"It's gonna be fine, Scorp", Rose told him again, "it's gonna be fine. The bones in your arm need to grow again. It will hurt, it will be painful, but you will be fine. I wrote your dad a letter, I hope you don't mind. But I thought someone might need to tell him, his son's in the Hospital Wing."<br>"You wrote my dad?", Scorpius whispered, "but he does not know about you…"  
>"Well, duh! Of course he knows about me. He knows I exist and from what you told me, he isn't going to be mad at you for being friends with me. Everything's gonna be fine, Scorp. Trust me."<br>He sighted and nodded. "Alright then. I will trust you, Rosie. But it is really going to be so boring. And… and I am scared, you know? I am scared that they will come to the Hospital Wing and torment me even more."  
>"Look, I'll ask Dominique. She is awesome at spells and she'll cast one to protect you. I promise. I'll stay here until Albus comes back and then I'll tell him to go get our cousin. And I'll read to you."<br>"You will read to me?" He raised his eyebrow.  
>"Yes. My favorite book."<br>"Which is?"  
>"Mary Poppins."<br>"I do not know that book…"  
>"That's alright. It's a muggle book about a nanny who comes to a family with two kids. They aren't very well behaved, their dad doesn't really care about him and Mary can do magic! But… magical magic! I love her sort of magic! I wish it would be real that laughing could make you fly… that would be so awesome!"<br>"But that is what brooms are for…"  
>"It's different. I'll read it to you." Rose nudged his side and smiled at him, started to search for the book in her bag.<br>"There it is! So.. you lie down, relax and close your eyes. And don't be scared! I read like my mum reads: with different voices for every character."  
>Scorpius let out a small giggle and did as she told him.<br>As Rose started reading, he relaxed even more. It reminded him of his own mother. She used to read stories to him the same way. Maybe it was a mother's thing, reading stories in different voices.  
>It was nice.<br>Rose had a nice voice, unlike other girls. Hers wasn't shrill or squeaky at all. It was soft, calming and a pleasure to listen to.  
>Slowly Scorpius began to drift away into a land where every girl had the voice of Rose and where they could jump through street-painters'-pictures into a bright and colourful funfair.<p> 


	4. Amazing Views & Invitations

„So, we asked my brother James to do us a favor."  
>"And he agreed. Well, under some conditions, but nevermind."<br>"He is awesome at making potions, you must know, Scorpius", Albus smiled at him.  
>"So he brewed a bit of … guess it! Guess it, Scorp!" Rose looked at him, absolutely excited.<br>"I do not know?", he raised an eyebrow and looked at both of them, "what did he brew?"  
>"<em>Felix Felicis<em>!" Rose grinned at him. "And it worked! Albus and I, we both took a sip of it and persuaded Hagrid to do this!"  
>"Do what?"<br>"Well… we didn't walk fast enough for my great entrance! So you need to wait until we are behind Hagrid's hut."  
>She said so and smiled at Scorpius, leading him to the hut.<br>When they reached it, Albus and Rose continued walking to the backyard.  
>"Is this…? Really?"<br>"Yes, it is", grinned Rose at her new friend, "that's a hippogriff. I told Albus how badly you wanted to get in touch with one, so Hagrid and us, we are giving you the opportunity to do it."  
>" Oh Rosie… you are so, so great! Thank you!" Scorpius hugged her and even Albus. "You two really are true friends. Thank you so much!"<br>"You're very welcome", smiled Rose, quite pleased with herself and her cousin's brilliant mind.

"And all I have to do is to look him in the eye without blinking and then I need to bow?"  
>"Her", Rose corrected him, "it's a female hippogriff. But yes, that is all you have to do. Sounds easy, huh?"<br>"It does, yes…" Scorpius nodded weakly.  
>"Shall Rose and I go first? But just don't take Rosie as an example. She is natural with all of those creepy, scary, dangerous creatures."<br>"They aren't scary and creepy! They are a bit dangerous, yes. But I love all of them! I love hippogriffs and thestrals and…"  
>"Wait. You can see thestrals?"<br>"Albus and James and Lily can, too!", she protested.  
>"And I always thought I was the only young person to be able to see them…"<br>"How come you…", Albus started to ask when Rose shushed him down.  
>"I'll show you." Rose squeezed Scorpius' hand lightly and bowed down in front of the hippogriff, trying to remain eye contact at all time. She waited until the hippogriff bowed, too. Happily, she walked towards the animal, stroking its feathers and its beak.<br>"See? She is a lovely hippogriff. Go on, Scorpius! Your go now."  
>She smiled at him and went back to Albus, waiting for Scorpius to do exactly what she had done before.<br>He was clearly nervous as hell, but he did a great job. With shaking hands, he stroked the hippogriff's beak and her feathers.  
>"This feels nice."<br>"You were fantastic, Scorp! Wasn't he, Al? Wasn't he?"  
>"Yes, he was great", Albus smiled, "and I think, Scorpius now deserves a treat."<br>"A treat?" He raised his eyebrow, "I am not a pet, you must know, Albus…"  
>"I know", he chuckled, "but still. Wanna show him, Rose?"<br>"Bloody hell, of course I want to! Hagrid? It's alright, isn't it?"  
>"Sure, Rosie, go ahead", Hagrid nodded. He loosened the hippogriff's reins, after Rose got on the back, holding out her hand to Scorpius.<br>"Come on! Get up behind me and hold on tight."  
>"Are you kidding me? Rose Nymphadora Weasley! You have got to be kidding me!"<br>She chuckled as he mentioned her second name. She has told him hers in return for him telling her his.  
>"I am serious. Come on, Scorp."<br>"Well.."  
>"You can trust me. I've done this so so many times…"<br>"Hmm…" He looked at her, his grey-blue eyes full of panic and a lot of other feelings Rose couldn't name.  
>Hesitantly, Scorpius sat up behind her, wrapping his arms around Rose's small waist. He held on tight and automatically closed his eyes as they got up high into the air.<br>"Open your eyes", he suddenly heard her voice very soft and near to his ear.  
>The blonde carefully looked around, starting to appreciate what he saw.<br>"Merlin! This is fucking amazing, Rose!"  
>"You're swearing, Scorp!", she laughed out loud, "you're swearing and you aren't even mad at someone! Must be my bad influence on you."<br>"No, it must be the view", he smiled, meaning not only the landscape beneath them. Although it was impressive as well.  
>They could see the lake, with so many of still undiscovered animals in it. They could see the Forbidden Forest, pupils walking around in the snow, seeming to be as tiny as ants.<br>"I think I spotted one of your cousins down there", he chuckled.  
>"I don't think so", she laughed, "it's just the sun setting down, so the red light reflects somehow. Don't know how. But doesn't it look amazing?"<br>"It does. So... I cannot find words to describe it." He gave Rose a kiss on the cheek and carefully watched her blushing.  
>"You know, you're a very smart boy, Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy. But you clearly have no idea how to enjoy yourself."<br>"Can you teach me? You and Albus. Can you two teach me how to enjoy myself, please?"  
>"Of course we can! Bloody hell, we are the best at teaching stuff like that! I mean, we are our fathers' children. We know all the secrets of Hogwarts. And one day, one day I'll take you to Uncle Charlie. He's in Romania, where he works as a dragonologist."<br>"He works with dragons? Blimy, Rosie! Your family is dangerous."  
>She giggled. "What did you expect?"<br>"I guess, I expected you to be dangerous", he chuckled and rested his chin on her shoulder.  
>Scorpius really enjoyed the flight. It was nice to be up in the air and much more comfortable than on the broom.<br>The air was cold but clear and fresh. Everything looked perfect from so high above. So calm, so peaceful. As if nothing would have ever happened to the world under him. No signs of the war anymore, nothing. Picture perfect.

"So you enjoyed it?", Albus asked Scorpius curiously as soon as the pair of them was back on the ground.  
>"You bet I did", he grinned at him.<br>"He liked it so much, he even started so swear!", Rose announced brightly.  
>Albus started to laugh. "So it must have been damn good for you! Well, anyway, I am heading off. I have to write my essay for Astronomy." He rolled his head and hugged Rose good-bye, waved at Scopius before he left.<br>"And I am going to kidnap you. To start our teaching lesson." Rose grinned at him and took him by his arm.  
>"And what are we going to do?"<br>"We grab some food in the kitchen and then we go to the Room of Requirement."  
>"You really love that room, am I right?", he giggled.<br>"Yes, I do! 'Cause it's awesome as hell!"  
>Scorpius laughed and put his arm around her shoulder. He didn't really think about it, it just came naturally. Rose smiled lightly.<br>"Have you ever been to the kitchen before?"  
>"No, never. I never needed to go there. I usually do not eat that much, you know."<br>"Yes, I know. But I want chocolate and fudge. And I am sure we can find something for you, too."

"I am so glad you enjoyed it", Rose smiled as she placed herself next to Scorpius in the sand.  
>"Because, frankly, I was a bit scared. Oh! By the way, your mother answered me!"<br>She handed him the letter and, while he was reading, got rid of some of her layers. The Room of Requirement was warm, the sun was shining and they had a small beach with a clear lake in the middle of the room.  
>'<em>Dear Miss Weasley,<br>Thank you very much for letting us know about our son's injury. We will talk to Professor Lennod; he surely finds a way to punish the boys.  
>Yours sincerely, Astoria Malfoy'<br>_"That is really nice of my mum", he smiled at her, "although I do not want them to be punished."  
>"Why not?"<br>"Well… I think you and I, we could punish them better and with less negative effect for me than Professor Lennod."  
>"Oh! Was that just Scorpius Malfoy suggesting getting revenge at assholes?" Rose chuckled and took a bite of her chocolate fudge.<br>"Well… sounds pretty good, if you ask me. Albus'll help us, I guess. And I got the perfect idea! But the problem is, they will already be in trouble, Professor Lennod doesn't hesitate. So we need to wait for another opportunity to pay them back. And as cruel as it might seem, I guess they are going to pay you back for telling them off."  
>Scorpius nodded. "I am sure, you are right. Sad but true. And I do not want to know what they are going to do next. Sending Bludgers after me and hexing away the bones in both of my arms was not as nice as it might sound", he muttered sarcastically.<br>She glanced at him, and then started to laugh. "You know, Scorp, you are so bloody funny! You really are! I love being around you, I sure do." Rose shook her head, still laughing.  
>"Well, I am glad my pain and anger amuse you, young lady."<br>"See? You're awfully funny! Did you know that farmers try to raise chicken without feathers? It's easier to kill them without the feathers. Good thing I don't eat meat, isn't it."  
>"How…" He shook his head. It was better not to ask why she came up with this sort of random fact about chicken. Too confusing. Just like Rose herself. Too damn confusing.<br>"You are vegetarian?"  
>"Yes I am. But I love chocolate! And Uncle Charlie told me, as a vegetarian, I can't work in Romania. They have hardly any there, so there isn't much food for vegetarians, unlike in England. I love Quorn! It's brilliant and tastes just like meat."<br>"What is Quorn?"  
>"Well… fungi. Yeah, I think you could say that. If you visit me over Easter, I'll cook a meal with Quorn for you. Because Dad said that you are very welcome to visit us. What do you say? Do you come to spend a few days with me and my family? Albus will come, too!", she quickly added after noticing the doubt in his eyes. They gave away so much. Like an open book. Sometimes Rose wasn't sure what exactly his eyes were saying but she wasn't that bad at guessing it.<br>"I am sure you would like it. We have a pool. Does that change your mind about it?"  
>"No, not really. A pool is not that tempting for me", he chuckled, "I have to ask my father and my mother first. I promise you, I will write them a letter, okay? This evening, as soon as I am back in my dormitory."<br>"Oh, that would be wonderful! Mum will love to get to know you! And Daddy said, as long as you can keep me happy, he's fine with it. See? No hate, just a lot of tolerance. Will be the same with your parents, I suppose."  
>"I hope so."<p> 


	5. Surprises

„Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy! You get down here! NOW!"  
>Scorpius winced. He knew his mother calling him by his full name and shouting like that doesn't really mean he did something right. The last time his mother shouted at him was after he accidentally set fire to the cat two years ago. So he knew, something bad must have happened.<br>But what he saw, when he got into the living room, was worse than expected. Actually, it was wonderful! But it made his heart sink.  
>"Can you tell me, Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy, how you could lie to us and especially, how you could lie to this young lady?" Astoria Malfoy pointed to Rose, who was sitting on the sofa next to her mum. Never has he seen her so full of fury, of anger and... Was that pain in her hazel eyes? He couldn't tell.<br>"You're a liar, Scorpius. A bloody liar! I can't even tell you how disappointed I am!"  
>Rose jumped off the sofa, storming towards her friend.<br>"You know, you could have at least told me that you don't wanna come over! You should have! Why didn't you ask your parents? Why? Why did you lie to me? You're such an asshole, Scorpius! I trusted you! What happened to being honest in our friendship? You didn't even ask them! My dad was so supportive! And it was damn hard to keep him from asking me all the time when you'd come over! What was I supposed to tell him, huh? _Well, you see Daddy, Scorpius still hasn't written whether he'll come or not and you now, Daddy, I am really scared Scorp only played with me, but well, at least you tried to be nice to him._"  
>Rose shook her head.<br>"I don't care if you feel intimidated by your parents! You told me they were nice, you told me they don't have a problem with anyone they don't know yet! You told me! But I guess you are the one having a problem with Weasleys! You suck, Scorpius, you really do and I am so done with you!"  
>She turned around to face his mother.<br>"I am very sorry to interrupt you, Mrs. Malfoy. I just wanted to pick up my friend to spend Easter with my family."  
>"Do not worry, sweetheart. I will talk to Scorpius later on. Have a nice holiday." Astoria hugged Rose and shook Hermione's hand, led both of them to the door.<br>Scorpius still stood where Rose had left him, in the middle of the living room. He couldn't move. He couldn't breathe. His heart was hardly beating. She was done with him. Done. And he didn't even stop her; he didn't even try to defend himself! What was he thinking? Why didn't he stop her? Just why?  
>"You like her, am I right?" Astoria smiled softly at her son, "you really like her."<br>"Of course I do. She is adorable." He shrugged and sat down in the living room, "but she is done with me now. And I cannot even be mad at her for it."  
>"But why did you not tell us? Of course you can go and visit your friends during the holidays."<br>"I was… I do not know. I was not afraid of you and Dad, of course not. But… I have no idea, Mum. Really."  
>"You were afraid of being alone with here, were you not?"<br>"No…" He raised his eyebrow, looking a bit confused at his mother, "I have been alone with her a lot of times."  
>"But you have never been alone with her outside of school, have you?"<br>"I have not been to Hogsmeade with her, if that is what you mean."  
>"Oh you know what I mean, Scorpy. You know."<br>She smiled at her son and cuddled him.  
>"You know what? As soon as your dad is home, I talk to him about going to the Weasleys for Easter. He will be fine with it, I promise. When he says yes, I will write a letter to Mrs. Weasley. And I am sure, she will be fine with it as well."<p>

A few days later, all of the two families were quite nervous.  
>Hermione was nervous, because she hoped everyone would like her food and that the conversations wouldn't stop. Because no-one liked awkward silences.<br>Ron was nervous, because he was sure, Draco Malfoy would judge him, his house, the behavior of his children.  
>Draco was nervous, because he was sure, Ronald Weasley would judge him and the behavior of Scorpius.<br>Astoria was nervous, because she wanted all of them to get along nicely and because she hoped there wouldn't be any awkward silences.  
>Scorpius was nervous because of Rose.<br>And Rose? She didn't even know they were coming! Hermione didn't bother telling her. It was much more fun to let her discovered it herself.  
>"So, who's visiting us, Mum?" Rose hopped onto the counter, dangling her legs.<br>"'Cause only three plates?" She took a bite of her apple, "Harry is five persons. I don't know anyone with only one child. Are Teddy, Vic and Andromeda coming?"  
>"Guess again, love." Hermione kissed her daughter's cheek and continued preparing the fish for dinner.<br>"Oh no! Mum! You didn't… you wouldn't…"  
>"I didn't." Hermione shook her head and smiled at Rose. She carefully pushed one of Rose's auburn curls, which had loosened itself from her bun, behind her ear. "Astoria did."<br>Rose immediately choked on a bit of her apple.  
>"Yes, the Malofys are coming over for dinner and Scorpius is staying with us afterwards. But he doesn't know that by now."<br>"Mum! Fuck! What… why?"  
>"Stop swearing, darling. You are too much your dad's daughter sometimes."<br>"I love being Daddy's little girl", she protested, "It's nice!"  
>"I know it is", she smiled and cuddled her daughter. "Anyway, they are coming and Scorpius is staying. Ron is perfectly fine with it."<p>

Rose spent the rest of the day deciding what to wear in the evening. She wanted to look good. Not too good, not too fancy, because it was only a casual dinner. But it was with the Malfoys! A family her family was not really befriended with. And, on top of that, they were Scorp's parents. She wanted to make a good first impression. Although yelling at her son in her own living room may not be the best first impression she could have made on Astoria Malfoy.  
>She wanted to look good for Scorpius. Because by now, she really was sorry for being so mean at him. Maybe, if she looked nice, he would accept her apology more easily. She didn't want to lose him as a friend, because he was the best one she has ever had! Besides Dominique and Albus, of course. But they were family and Scorpius wasn't. So he was something special. Very special, for her.<br>And it hurt her so much, that he wasn't honest with her. That he lied to her. But it hurt much more to see him being hurt. The pain in his eyes had been nearly unbearable. She didn't know she had the power to hurt him so much.  
>Hurt.<br>Somehow that was the only word in her mind, while she got dressed. And it clearly wasn't a nice one.  
>It was the only word in her mind while she waited for her mother to call her. While she waited for Scorpius to arrive. Rose sat on her bed, her fingers were running over her flowery skirt again and again. She was damn nervous. Even more than the seconds before the Sorting Hat had touched her head to tell her which house she will be sorted in. This was way worse.<br>As soon as she heard someone popping through the fire, she jumped off her bed and sprinted down the stairs. Right in time.  
>When she arrived, Scorpius had just appeared in the fire, the sparkles of Floo Powder still around him.<br>Without thinking about it, Rose ran towards him, flinging her arms around his neck.  
>"I am so sorry, Scorpius! So sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you or to yell at you or to be mean at you or…"<br>"It is alright, Rose. It is alright." He cuddled her und smiled softly. "I am not mad at you. You were right, I should have told you. I am sorry."  
>"Yes, you have to be sorry! Because you promised to be honest! But you weren't."<br>"I know. And I am sorry. It will never ever happen again, I promise, Rose. I promise." He gave her a light kiss on the forehead before letting go of her.  
>"May I introduce you to my parents? This is my mother, Astoria Malfoy, who you already know, and this is my father, Draco Malfoy, of whom you might have heard before."<br>Rose smiled politely and shook hands with Astoria.  
>"I am very sorry for yelling in your living room. That wasn't particularly nice of my…"<br>"It was perfectly fine for the situation you have been in, sweetheart", Astoria smiled.  
>Blushing, Rose turned towards Draco and hold out his hand to him. To her surprise, he really took it.<br>"Welcome to our house, Mr. Malfoy. Again, I am very sorry for yelling in your living room."  
>Behind her, Rose could feel her dad tensing. He surely wasn't comfortable with all of this, but he kept calm and let her daughter handle Draco on her own.<br>"Well, Miss Weasley, I am glad you yelled at him rather than my wife. It was the perfect punishment for Scorpius' inacceptable behavior towards a friend of his."  
>Draco smiled at her and greeted Rose's parents.<br>All in all, the evening went by uneventfully. Nevertheless, it was an awkward situation for all of them to be in. Rose was just glad that her brother Hugo spent the evening with Albus and Lily at the Potters'.  
>After dinner, Rose insisted in showing Scorpius around the house. She showed him the kitchen, the living room, the barn with the chickens and the two horses and at the end, her own room.<br>"So, this is Rose Weasley's room… I never thought I would end up here one day", he grinned at her.  
>"Do you like it?"<br>"Let us just say that it is you. Completely you. I like it, yes."  
>"Shall I show you the room you will be sleeping in tonight?"<br>"I am what?" Shocked, he turned his head away from the books in her bookshelf.  
>"You're staying here tonight. Mum and your mum thought it would be a nice surprise for you. Are you mad?"<br>"No, I am not. Just a little surprised… But you do not need to show me the room. I will see it eventually."  
>"Alright. I can show you the piano room, if you want to."<br>"You have a piano room?", he asked surprised.  
>"Yes. And I can actually play quite well. Mum taught me. Can you play an instrument?"<br>"No, I cannot. But I would love to hear you play, Rosie."  
>"Okay! Come!" She smiled at him widely. Scorpius smiled back, shyly, putting his arm around her shoulder. It was a nice feeling. He was only wearing a tee-shirt, she what-ever-it-was-called-when-a-shirt-did-not-have-any-straps. Scorpius wasn't familiar with those words. But the point was, he was touching her bare shoulder with the bare skin of his arm.<br>It prickled. A very nice and soft prickle. Scorpius was actually a bit disappointed when Rose sat down on the bench in front of the piano. He had to take away his arm.  
>The room was really nice. A big glass door led the way to the beautiful garden, full of blooming flowers. A few tiny balls of light were flying through the night, illuminating some of the beauty.<br>"Do you have roses in your garden?"  
>"No, we don't. And we don't have any lilies."<br>"Because you are called Rose and your cousin is called Lily?"  
>"Yes. Because Mum thinks, it is really stupid to have her daughter and her niece in her garden", she giggled.<br>"But why did she name you Rose then?"  
>"I don't know… I have never asked her? Why did I never ask her? Weird. I can be weird sometimes. You know, chocolate chips cookies were made by mistake, because the chocolate didn't melt properly. I have no idea why my parents named me after a flower. I'll ask them at some point in time."<br>Scorpius looked at her, confused. Random facts in the middle of a conversation still threw him off.  
>"I start playing?"<br>"Yes, please…"  
>Rose smiled at him and began to play one of her favorite songs. She didn't know the name of it, but she still liked it. The tune was soft and fresh. Like a warm Summer breeze on a lazy Sunday evening. Scorpius seemed to enjoy it as well. His eyes were closed and he was smiling dreamingly.<br>A knock on the doorframe dragged both of them out of their dream world.  
>"Scorpius, darling, we just wanted to say that we are heading of now. We are leaving you with Rose."<br>"You are leaving me with her?" He raised an eyebrow. "Sounds as if she would be my babysitter. Just like when I was younger and you told me, you would leave me with Gran and Gramps to have some Mummy-Daddy-time."  
>Astoria chuckled and kissed her son on the cheek, hugged Rose.<br>"Have fun you two. All you need is in the guest's bed room. We will see you again on the platform, darling." She kissed him again, before she left the pair of them.  
>"On the platform? So… You're staying here for the rest of the holidays!" Rose smiled at him enthusiastically. "That's so fantastic! I know exactly what we will do! We're gonna have so much fun! Al and I, we will continue teaching how to enjoy yourself."<br>Scorpius smiled at her. "I hope so."


	6. Flawless Babies

"Hey boys!"  
>"Hey Rosie", Scorp and Albus replied. The pair of them was sitting under a tree near the lake, having a boy-talk about a few things. About Rose, about Lily, about Potions, Quidditch and the upcoming Hogsmeade weekend. Over the holidays, when Scorpius had stayed with Rose, Albus had been there half of the time so by now, nearly at the end of the school year, Albus and Scorpius got along quite well. To be precise, they liked each other.<br>Rose sat down next to them, hugged Albus and kissed Scorpius' cheek. She giggled at him blushing and laid down into the grass.  
>"Isn't it wonderfully warm today? And so… I don't know! Sunny, I guess. Yeah. Sunny."<br>Scorpius chuckled and nudged her side.  
>"You are adorable, Rosie. Of course it is sunny. It is May. Last days of school and during summer, you are going to spend two weeks with me."<br>"I am gonna do _what_?"  
>Rose sat up and looked at him, clearly confused.<br>"You are going to spend two weeks of your summer holidays with me. My mum talked to your mum and you are coming with us."  
>"Where? What? Bloody hell… Scorp! You could've asked me at least."<br>"Well, you are fine with it, are you?"  
>"Yes, I am… Just a bit… taken by surprise. BUT! I love the idea! That's amazing! So, what are we gonna do?" She looked at him, full of excitement. Her eyes were beaming, as she waited for him to answer. But Scorpius enjoyed her looking at him for a while before he answered: "We are going to enjoy ourselves, of course. Nothing special. I take you with me to our summer house in Italy. You can ride horses, swim in the sea, enjoy the sun. Does it sound good to you?"<br>"You have a summer house in _Italy_?"  
>"Is that a bad thing?"<br>"No! I would have never imaged you to have a house there. I thought… well. Maybe France. But not Italy. Don't ask me why, I have no idea!" Rose laughed and hugged him grinning. "I love the idea of spending some of my holidays with you in Italy! So, it means a week with Charlie in Romania, a week with Potters and Weasleys in France with Vic and Teddy and the baby and I am spending two weeks with Dominique, James and Albus traveling around Great Britain."  
>"You do? That sounds really nice! Where are you going?"<br>"We start off in London", explained Albus, who was still sitting with them, watching both of his friends carefully. Yes, there clearly was a tension between them. But Albus wasn't sure whether it was sexual tension, tension of two lovers or just a very good, very deep friendship. "And then we are going to Bristol, Birmingham, Leeds, Newcastle, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen and the last three days we'll spend in Belfast."  
>"Well, I hope to get some postcards then!"<br>"Of course you will! Albus and I, we will write you two postcards from wherever we are!"  
>"Two?"He raised an eyebrow, "why so?"<br>"Because, here is my plan: I will pick out one card and so will Albus. Of course both of us will write on both cards. You have to guess which card is from whom. And when we are back from our trip, you tell us. While we are still in the cities, we buy you a souvenir each. And for every card you guess correctly, you get the souvenir from the equivalent city. Good idea?"  
>Albus started to laugh and Scorpius nodded grinning. "Fantastic idea! But… your mum and dad let you travel the country on your own?"<br>"My brother and Dominique are off age, she's 18 and he 17, so both of them are allowed to use magic. Which doesn't calm down Aunt Hermione, but my parents and Uncle Ron. They think it's alright as long as we send cards and phone whenever we changed cities and moved into different hotels."  
>"My parents would never ever ever ever let me travel the country on my own. Or with cousins. Who I do not really have."<br>"You don't really have any cousins? Poor Scorpy-Cupcake! How come?"  
>"Well, Rosie-Pumpkin-Pie, to have a cousin you need aunts and uncles. My Dad is an only-child, my Mum has a sister. Her son and I… we do not get along very well. So I do have a cousin, but not really. I usually see him around Hogwarts, but hardly ever talk to him. Makes sense?"<br>"Makes perfectly sense. But that's really sad! I love my cousins!"  
>"Well, I am sitting next to you, I am your cousin, so you have to say you love me!", Albus chuckled.<br>"I'm saying it because I do! I wouldn't go on holiday with you, if I wouldn't love you."  
>"Anyway… are you on tour all summer holidays, Pumpkin Pie?"<br>"No, I am not, Cupcake. Between all of my journeys, I have a few days to wash clothes and stuff like that and our summer holidays are longer than six weeks, aren't they?"  
>"Where are you during your birthday?", Albus asked her.<br>"When is her birthday?"  
>"Why don't you ask me? I am here! Hello!" Rose waved in front of Scorpius' eyes, "can you see me?"<br>"Her birthday is the 3rd of July." Albus chose to ignore Rose. It was sometimes the best thing to do.  
>"Ah, alright. So should I get something for her?"<br>"If you ask me, you don't have to. I mean… she is really annoying from time to time and she calls you Cupcake. No need to get her a present."  
>"Well! Of course he has to! He is my friend! And friends get a present for friends! Not nice, Scorpius, not nice!" He chuckled and rolled his eyes.<br>"Of course I will get you a present. Something very special. So, to come back to Albus' question: where are you at your birthday?"  
>"I am with Albus in France and he should be aware of that fact!"<br>"I have no idea when we are in France. I usually just pack my stuff when Mum tells me to do it."  
>"Oh Albus!" She started laughing. "I am so glad I'm half of a Granger! Otherwise I would just be like you: headless, confused and unplanned. No! Nothing for me. You see, Scorpius, when I am going on holiday, I pack outfits, not clothes."<br>"And… how does that work?"  
>"Well… a week before we head of, I start planning outfits. Where are we going, what do I need? So, when we are going to France, I know I don't need long trousers. I need beach outfits. One for the day, one for the night. So I have a look in my wardrobe and try to work out, what I can add to my day-beach-outfit to make it a night-beach-outfit. And that's what I do with all of my outfits. I am the one who needs the smallest suitcase. My dad needs the biggest, because he doesn't plan ahead. And don't even get me started on James and Lily! Awful! By now I have taught Albus a lot, so he is normal. But I am perfect."<br>Scorpius grinned. "You are perfect, are you? Well, I am curious to see what your suitcase will look like when you come with me to Italy."  
>"You'll see! Do I need something really, really fancy?"<br>"What do you mean?" He raised an eyebrow, "really, really fancy?"  
>"Yes. So… Yule Ball fancy."<br>"Pumpkin Pie, we will be enjoying ourselves. We will not be going on a fancy ball with lots and lots of rich people talking about their horses and swimming pools and shares and cricket."  
>"Good. 'Cause I don't like cricket. So nothing fancy?"<br>"Nothing you would not normally wear on a family holiday."  
>"Okay. But I do need a swim suit?"<br>"Yes. The house is at the sea and we have a swimming pool. And, I am so looking forward to seeing Rose Weasley in a bikini. So looking forward to it."  
>"And I am looking forward to seeing Scorpius Malfoy in nothing but his swim shorts."<br>Both of them grinned while Albus just rolled his eyes.  
>"Just get a room already. The pair of you is awful! If you two don't end up fucking each other one day, I don't know what's wrong with the world."<br>"Albus!" His cousin looked at him highly indignantly but Scorpius just laughed.  
>"You know, Al, I really think Rose and I might end up together one day. Even if it is only when both of us are drunk and one recently broke up and needs to fill the emptiness inside."<br>"You really think we will sleep with each other one day?"  
>"Yes. Sure. Why know? You look good, I look good, we like each other. Maybe we will never fall in love. But having sex… sure." Scorpius shrugged.<br>"Oh wow… I never… really weird, Scorp. Really weird. But you're probably right, I guess."  
>"Of course I am. I am flawless."<br>"I thought, _I _would be the flawless being, not you!"  
>"We are both flawless. Deal?"<br>"Deal." Rose nodded and kissed his cheek. She laid back into the grass, followed by the two boys. After a while of silence – which Rose sometimes didn't really like – she asked: "Anything interesting? Al? Scorp?"  
>"Hmm… oh! Guess who sent me a letter!"<br>"I don't know! Who did?"  
>"Dimi did."<br>"Oh did he? I haven't heard of him in ages! What did he write?"  
>"He'll be in England during our holidays and asked to meet up with him in Diagon Alley. Would you like to?"<br>"I'd love to! You know I had a huge crush on him last year. And his stories are so interesting."  
>"I am sorry to interrupt you two but… who is Dimi?"<br>"Dimitri Krum", Albus explained, "his dad is Viktor Krum. During the Quidditch World Club three years ago, he recognized my mum and talked to her. You know, Rosie's mum had a crush on him during her fourth year in Hogwarts. Ron still doesn't like him."  
>"Oh, he hates him! He got so mad when Mum invited Viktor over for dinner. So mad! My parents fight with each other, yes. Like every couple does. But I have never heard them fighting that badly. Hugo was so upset, he started crying and came into my room to stay in my bed. I mean, my little brother was 10 back then. Dad really, really, really hates him. He hates Viktor so much, he would rather see you getting me pregnant and leaving me than Dimi loving, worshipping and marrying me."<br>Scorpius chuckled. "Sounds bad. But trust me: if I ever get you pregnant, I will do everything to make you happy. But I do not think I will ever get you pregnant."  
>"It would be a flawless baby, nevertheless", Rose grinned, "anyway, Dad hates him, Aunt Ginny likes him, Uncle Harry and Mum as well. And all of us kids just adore Dimi. He is... how old is he, Albus?"<br>"He's two years older than Dominique, so he's 19."  
>"Yes, he's 19 and so cool and so damn good looking."<br>"So… you fancy him?"  
>"I did last year. But I don't know if I still do. Did you know that the pupil of your eye grows about 45% when you look at someone you love? You wanna meet Dimi, too?"<br>"Hmm…" Scorpius thought about it. At first, there was a random comment about love while she was talking about Dimitri. Secondly, would he like to meet the guy, Rose fancied? If he knew him, if he knew why she fancied Dimitri, it might be good for him. He could watch Rose's eyes and see if they really grew 45% when she looked at him. But did he really want to see Rose looking at some other bloke like that? Scorpius wasn't sure about it. He had to try it.  
>"Sure, why not? It would mean another day of seeing you two and going into Diagon Alley."<p> 


	7. Like Mother Like Daughter

„Scorp! Hey!"  
>Rose waved at him and hugged her friend.<br>„I am so glad you really came to meet up with Al, Dimi and me!"  
>"Is he here yet?"<br>"No… you can't see him, can you?", she chuckled, "but I am sure he will be here soon. He is usually a very punctual young man."  
>Albus nodded. "Rose is right. And he still has two minutes until it's three o'clock."<br>Scorpius nodded slightly and sat down next to Rose. _A very punctual young man. _  
>"Albus, would you like to come back to my house afterwards? Rose and I, we are heading of tomorrow to Italy and I thought a boy's-day would be nice. What do you think?"<br>"Sure, sounds good", he smiled at Scorpius and Scorpius smiled back. But only seconds later, his smile faded away as Rose jumped up and hugged Dimitri Krum. He sure looked good, Scorpius could not deny it. Dark hair, a bit longer than Scorpius', tall, a perfect physical appearance – at least Scorpius thought girls would really love the way Krum looked like. He looked perfect. Like a real gentleman, like everybody's darling. But he might still be a stupid coward, who knew? But if Rose liked him so much, he couldn't be bad or mean. And it annoyed him. It really did.  
>"Hi, I am Dimitri", the Bulgarian smiled, holding his hand out to Scorpius. For Rose, he thought. For Rose he wanted to be nice and friendly.<br>"Scorpius. Nice to meet you." He forced a smile and shook Dimitri's hand, "So, Rose told me, you are doing a trip around the world?", he asked curiously.  
>"Yes. I finished school last year and know I am traveling. I have already been traveling around Asia and Australia, New Zealand… Pretty cool, huh?"<br>"Yeah… pretty cool. And now you are traveling around Europe. And America afterwards?"  
>"Correctly. I've been to Scandinavia, Germany, the East of Europe and now I am here. And really glad I've got the time to catch up with my little Rose."<br>Rose laughed and cuddled Dimitri. "Don't call me that! I am not little anymore."  
>"Of course not. You really are a beautiful young lady now."<br>There were so many things which annoyed Scorpius. The way Rose looked at Dimitri, the way she ignored him – Scorpius – because she was too busy admiring Dimitri, the way she just left her friend behind for such a bloke, the way Rose laughed about the Bulgarian's jokes which weren't funny _at all_, the way her wonderful hazel eyes sparkled when she looked up to Dimitri. All of it annoyed Scorpius just so much. But he still tried to be nice.  
>"And which country did you like the most?<br>"England, of course. Here's where my beautiful Rose is."  
>Scorpius tried hard not to roll his eyes or to punch Dimitri in the face just to wipe off the smirk of his face.<br>Merlin, he hated him.  
>"And apart from England and Rose, which country?"<br>"I liked India. Very colourful but a very bad Quidditch national team. You know, Scorpius, you are quite young, as I can see. If you really want to impress the ladies, a world trip is always a great way to get attention."  
>"You know, Dimitri", Scorpius mimicked him, "I would rather impress a lady by who I am than by what countries I have seen. And I would rather travel the world to really experience a country and its culture than to have something to tell the ladies about."<br>"You really have a lot to learn about girls", Dimitri smirked and followed Rose out of the small café.  
>The day went by really slowly. As if it would never want to end.<br>Scorpius was glad when Dimitri finally left, after all of them took Rose home and Dimitri had a little chat with Hermione.

When he got home, he went straight up to his room and slammed the door behind him.  
>"Wow, Scorp! Calm down!", Albus chuckled and sat down on the sofa, "you don't like him, do you?"<br>"Not. At. All." The blonde let himself fall next to his friend on the sofa, "he is awful. Such a… I have no idea! I just hate him! The way he talks about his world trip, the way his voice sounds like, the way he always touched Rose's arm… no. Just no."  
>Albus grinned. "Sure you hate him. Because he fancies my cousin and she fancies him. Because you know she will talk about him all the time during your two weeks in Italy. Because <em>you<em> fancy her."  
>"I do not fancy your cousin, Albus. She is adorable and cute and stuff, but… Rose is too cute. Like… like a bunny, you know? People like bunnies, because they are cute, nice to look at, fluffy and adorable. But you do not want to have a bunny as a pet, because it is kind of boring, just being so cute and adorable. You want a dog or a cat, because they actually <em>do <em>something rather than being cute. You know I love your cousin. As a friend. And yes, maybe someday we will have sex. And maybe at some point in time I will fancy her. But I would never date her. And if I ever ever ever consider dating Rose Weasley, I make sure before I ask her, I am asking her dad, my dad and you for permission. Like a gentleman."  
>"Well, Scorp, that's really sweet of you. But you know my cousin is not a bunny, do you? I know, Rose is loud, all over the place, somewhat childish but she is just as powerful, fearless, awesome with animals, ambitious and loving."<br>"I know. But she is not the kind of girl I would date. Not now. Maybe in a year. When we both have changed a bit. But not now."  
>"I know what you mean. You need someone else but you are still jealous because you want her to like you, don't you?"<br>"Of course. But just as a friend. Please, Albus, let us chance the topic, alright?"  
>"Okay. But I can't talk about Dimi with you, because I like him."<br>Scorpius laughed. "It is alright. You do not have to. Although I really do not understand, why you like him. Or why Rose does."  
>"Like mother like daughter, I guess. Aunt Hermione fancied his father, now Rose fancies his son."<br>Scorpius sighed. "Okay. Change of topic! Do you think Rose is looking forward to going to Italy? With me? And my parents?"  
>"She doesn't talk about anything else than your holiday. How excited she is, how much fun it will be, how much she will enjoy it… Don't worry about it, Scorp." Albus smiled at him, "she will like it and I am sure you two will have a lot of fun together. She'll loose you up a bit and you might make her a bit more serious."<br>Scorpius really looked worried. What if Rose didn't like the house? What if she wouldn't get along well with his parents? What if they would fight? What if Rose and Scorpius would fight? What if it would rain? Or snow? What if Rose would really be talking about Dimitri Krum all the time? What if she would forget about Scorpius? What if Rose and Dimitri would end up dating? What if he thought about it way too much, so he would think of all the _'what ifs'_ rather than enjoying his holiday with Rose? There were just too many thoughts in his mind right now.  
>"Just make sure you don't say mean things about Dimitri."<br>"But I do not like him!"  
>"I know! Well… explain her, why you don't like him."<br>"Yeah, sure." He rolled his eyes, "What am I going to say? _Hey Rosie. You know, I do not like your heartthrob simply because you fancy him and he fancies you and I know you will fuck."  
><em>"The moment you say _fuck_, Rose will know there's something wrong with you. But that's not what I meant. I meant you should explain it to her. Tell her you don't like him, because you think he is a show-off, because you think he does the world trip for wrong or weird reasons. She'll understand that and won't talk about him, I promise. I know my cousin, trust me."  
>"Alright then. I will try it. Thanks, Albus. You really are a true friend."<p> 


	8. How Many Ways

„And you do not mind going horseback riding with me?"  
>"Of course not." Rose smiled at Astoria. How could she say no to the mother of her newly won best friend? No, that would be really impolite. And Rose was so so keen on riding the beautiful horse Astoria had offered her. It was a lovely Pintabian mare, with so much power and strength! Rose was really fascinated and impressed by her.<br>Also, the landscape was amazing! The Tuscany was beautiful. Full of pretty flowers and endless meadows, full of a light Summer-ish smell. There were fruit-trees, bushes, hills… Rose love Italy. She loved the house they stayed in, because she didn't expect it to look like this. She thought it might be very pompous, not fitting in to the landscape. But it did! The white rural farm house with the pool in the backyard and the small hill, where she and Scorpius usually picnicked or sat to watch the sun going down. It was all so lovely and warm.  
>"But you need to tell me the mare's name again, please. I totally forgot it."<br>"Her name is Hala. I own her ever since she was a born, because I owned her mother."  
>"So you broke her in yourself?"<br>"I did, yes", Astoria smiled, "you are really impressed, am I right?"  
>"She is so beautiful, I love her! And I am glad you asked me to go riding with you, thank you very much."<br>"Nevermind, Darling. Scorpius told me you have a horse yourself and because he does not like riding I thought I just ask you. And it also gives me a good opportunity to get to know you a little better. At least you are my son's best friend, so I need to know a few things about you."  
>"A few things? Like what? You already know my parents. You haven't met my brother yet."<br>"You have a brother?"  
>"Oh yes, I do", Rose nodded, "Hugo. He is younger than me and sort of a shy person. Not as outgoing as I am but he is still a lot of fun. But he has the problem that, once he starts talking, he doesn't stop talking. And then he talks a lot of stupid stuff. But I love him."<br>"Oh yes, growing up with a brother or a sister is really lovely", Astoria smiled at her, "I have an older brother and an older sister myself."  
>"So how come Scorp is an only child?" Before Astoria could answer, Rose realized, what exactly she had asked. How could she? Sometimes she really talked without thinking about it.<br>"I'm sorry Mrs. Malfoy. I'm not supposed to ask you such personal questions, I'm sorry."  
>"Oh Darling, I do not mind. You have your heart on your tongue and I think, this is a very brave characteristic. And I told you, you can call me Astoria." The brunette smiled at Rose softly, "you really should always speak your mind, do not feel intimidated by anyone. To answer your question: I do not know. Draco and me, we wanted to have more than one child. He grew up without any sisters or brothers, so he wanted two children. Not more, no. Two was perfectly fine. After I gave birth to Scorpius, I felt down. Do you know what the baby blues is?"<br>"Yes, I do. You had it?"  
>"I did indeed. That is why there are hardly any pictures of me and Scorpius during his first five or six months. Every time I was with him, I was scared he would start crying and I would not be able to calm him down. I was looking at this wonderful baby and all I saw was someone strange, someone I did not know, someone I did not love. But I did not want anyone else to be with him, except for his father. It was a struggle, it really was. A year after he was born, I was finally able to fully appreciate my son, thanks to a therapy. Draco was such a help during this time. And after that Draco and I never talked about a second child."<br>Rose didn't know what to say. She didn't expect such an honest answer, she didn't expect _this_ answer. It was sort of dramatic, wasn't it?  
>"I am very glad you told me", Rose smiled at her, "and for an only child, Scorpius is very well behaved. Some of them are such show-offs! If you'd ask Scorp, he would give you Dimitri as a very good example for a spoiled only child."<br>"Oh, he told me about him!" Astoria chuckled. "It was very amusing listening to Scorpius bickering about the – and I quote – _bloke who could not stop looking at himself in everything which was reflecting, even puddles!_"  
>"He really said that?" Rose laughed a little. "Oh, Dimi can be bloody narcissistic from time to time, that's true. Never mind. Scorpius doesn't need to meet him again, so it's fine. I just think, Scorp thinks, I'm in love with Dimi. But I'm not. I admire him, yes. But that's not enough for being in love. And I am only 16! I can wait to fall in love. If it happens, it happens. I just don't want it to be like it was for my parents. I mean, they were – and still are- best friends when they fell in love with each other, and they didn't know about the other one's feelings, so there were a lot of awkward moments and a lot of pain. And I don't want it to be like it was for Harry and Ginny. Falling in love with your best mate's sister? Not good. My best friend's brother would be my cousin. So… even worse!" Rose started to laugh, when she looked at the puzzled face of Astoria. "Most of my friends are my family. Scorpius really is one of the only non-related friends I have. Well, I am not related to the Scamander Twins, but I still count them as family, because Luna is family. So falling in love with my best friend's brother isn't an option either. As I don't believe in love at first sight, I can't have a beginning like Fleur and Bill. So… who else is there? Oh, I know! Victoire and Ted. They were friends, but not best friends. So it was easier for them to fall in love and accept that they loved each other. I think, I want a love like that. It's so easy! I don't want to fall in love like Harry's parents. She hated him, he wooed her but she didn't fall in love with him until he changed and grew up. Maybe I want a beginning like Tonks. Remus Lupin and she just started to love each other. But they were both so problematic, Mum told me. Well, she wasn't. He was. He thought, he would be too old and too poor and too much of a werewolf for her. I like the idea of their beginning."<br>When Rose stopped talking, she looked rather irritated.  
>"I'm sorry, Astoria. You know, when I start talking, I usually end up talking about my family. Scorpius is used to it by now. I didn't want to bore you, I'm sorry…"<br>"You don't have to be, Darling. I like to hear those sorts of stories. So, how many ways of falling in love do we have there? First of all, love out of hate. Love for the best friend, love for someone close but yet not as close as a best friend, which would be the Potters ' and your cousin Victoire's way. And somehow the one of Tonks. Then we have love at first sight. Four ways? There have to be more! Maybe my story adds a fifth way. I am two years younger than Draco, so I knew him from school, but he never really noticed me and I was never drawn towards him. Well, the thing is, my older sister, Daphne, she was in Slytherin. I… I have been in Ravenclaw." She smiled to herself by the look on Rose' face. "Yes, I was a Ravenclaw and I am very proud of it. But anyway. The first time I talked to Draco was in the Ministry. We both worked there and when I started my first day, I felt really lost. I ran into him, while I was ordered to get something for my boss. I was on the wrong floor and did not know where to go. Of course I was glad to spot a familiar face. So I walked up to him and asked him, where I would need to go. He was a real gentleman, escorted me back to my floor and got what I had to get. From then on we went out dating and it just worked. It was not love at first sight and it also was not falling in love with someone close. I guess it was the way, most people fall in love. By meeting someone and dating him to see, if there is more."  
>"That's a sweet love story", Rose smiled, "I want one like that. Yes, I do. I've made my decision."<br>"I think, you need a love story of your own", Astoria told her, "Because every little girl wants her own fairytale to come true. So every little girl should have her own fairytale rather than adapting the ones she already knows."  
>Yes, Rose really liked Astoria Malfoy. She was open-minded, she was beautiful, strong and she was Scorpius' family. Of course she liked her. She liked the rides, the stories Astoria told her about her work, about Scorpius, about herself. And on top of that, Rose got to spend so much time with Scorpius! She taught him how to enjoy himself, how to have fun. It truly was the best holiday she had ever had.<p> 


	9. Revenge

It was so relaxing. The sun was shining and its rays tickled her nose, leaving a warm feeling all over her body. Her wild auburn curls were shimmering in the sun, letting her freckles shining once more, before the sun would set. There was a light breeze coming from the water.  
>It was Mid-October, but still warm enough for Rose to sit outside by the lake without a jacket, reading a newly discovered book. Sometimes she looked up and wondered which sort of creatures lived in there. If there were any still undiscovered beasts or animals.<br>Her book was sad, really sad. So it was no wonder she started sobbing after a while.  
>That was why she didn't hear them coming. Why she didn't pay attention, why she wasn't prepared to defend herself.<br>And it is also why Rose was only seconds later dangling upside-down in the air.  
>"Who do we have here?", a boy with shiny white teeth and black hair full of gel asked grinningly.<br>"As if you wouldn't know it, Zabini!"  
>"Of course I know it, but to be honest, I am not sure which Weasley-prat you are. The one who always hangs out with Malfoy? Ah, Malfoy… he's a blood traitor, you know?"<br>"Leave him alone, you bloody bastard! I swear, if you touch Scorpius, I am going to…"  
>"Going to what, huh? Awh, little baby Rose is going to run to Mama, telling her all about the big bad boys at school. How cute! Look at her face." He laughed, turning towards the other boys, who were accompanying him, "her little face is all turning red."<br>"I swear, if you touch him, Zabini, if you dare touching Scorpius…"  
>"Don't worry, Weasley. We are touching what he admires most. See, if he thinks, he can tell us off, if he thinks he can run to his father, we will get him back."<br>"What the fuck? Is this still because the Quidditch Team, _your_ bloody Quidditch Team humiliated him? You are so… all of you, all of you are just so sad!"  
>"Well, better stop talking, prat", he hissed, "Better save your breath. As I was about to say, we are not going to touch your precious Scorpius. We are touching what he admires the most. Which is going to be you."<p>

It seemed like forever until Rose finally opened her eyes again.  
>At first, everything she saw was a bit blurry. There spots of red, a spot of white, spots of green, black and more red.<br>"Rosie?" She felt a hand on her forehead and closed her eyes again.  
>She could hear familiar voices, but couldn't really tell, who was there. Rose thought, just for a second, she heard Dominique's voice. But her cousin wasn't on Hogwarts anymore. But still, there was this feeling that she just had to be there! Like Lily had to be there, like Hugo had to be there. They were family and Rose wasn't feeling well at all. She didn't even know why. She remembered being at the lake, reading… hopefully her book didn't fall into the water! This thought scared her up.<br>She suddenly opened her eyes, looking around. Although everything was still blurry and she started to feel dizzy.  
>"My book is fine, isn't it?", she croaked, "It didn't fall into the lake, did it?"<br>Rose didn't even know whom she was addressing. Just some randomly chosen red spot, because red was her family.  
>"Your book is perfectly fine", someone answered her. It was a girl, definitely. Or Louis. He sometimes sounded like a girl.<br>"I took it up to your room, it is waiting there for you. Once you get out of the Hospital Wing."  
>"Why am I here?" It must be Lily who was talking. There was no other female Weasley-Potter-Child in Hogwarts anymore. Only her and Lily. And then there were Louis, Hugo, Albus and James. Everyone else was already gone. This realization hit her as hard as a rock. Out of nowhere, Rose started crying. Not only sobbing, no. She cried, because all of her other cousins had already left Hogwarts.<br>"Shht, Rosie, it's alright. You're fine." Now it was James. His voice was remarkable. She noticed him sitting down next to her, stroking her cheek.  
>"You're fine, Rosie. Nothing happened. We're gonna pay them back, I promise. Al and Scorpius and I, we already have a plan. And look, Dom is here. Dom is here, because she heard what happened from Louis, he was writing a letter to her when we told him, so now she's here. Everything is fine, Sweetiebell. Please stop crying… We're all here. Dom and Louis and Hugo and Al and Scorpius and me. Please don't cry anymore, you're fine and your hair will grow back, I promise. Please stop crying…", James begged her. He really couldn't stand any of his family crying. It was breaking his heart. Naturally, he was quite glad when Rose really stopped.<br>"My… my hair?", she sobbed lightly, "What happened to my hair?" With her hands trembling, Rose lifted up her hands to touch her head.  
>"I am bold", she whispered, "I am bold. James. I am bold. I have no hair."<br>"I know, Sweetiebell. But it's gonna grow back. Actually, once you are fully awake and healed, you will be given a potion. Then your hair will grow back."  
>"But… why healed? What happened?"<br>"Oh Love, we thought you could tell us", Dominique sighed and sat down on Rose' other side of the bed.  
>"I need my hair, Dom. I need it. Because, you know, people with copper and zinc in their hair are more intelligent."<br>Scorpius chuckled. A typical Rose-sentence. Even when she was devastated, she still threw in some random fact she's read somewhere.  
>"Oh! Scorp! You're there, Cupcake."<br>"Sure I am, Pumpking Pie", Scorpius smiled, "Right next to Albus, behind James."  
>"Okay. Because, all of you, you must know, I really can't see you properly. You are blurry dots. Mostly red dots."<br>"Because most of us have red hair, Love." Dominique took Rose' hand in hers, "What happened? Can you remember anything? A little girl from third year found you by the lake."  
>"Oh, poor girl… did anyone give her chocolate to make her feel better?"<br>"Yes, she is fine. Do you remember anything, Rose?"  
>"I… Dominique! They… those fucking blokes! It was Zabini and his friends. I just remember being upside-down in the air and arguing with them and they told me they want to get revenge, because of Scorpius but they are not gonna touch him. Oh, I am so glad they are not doing anything to Scorpius!"<br>"It was _them_?" Scorpius inhaled sharply. "I am going to kill those bastards. No matter what plan we made, I am going to kill them, I am going to rip them apart, every single one of them."  
>"No, Scorpius. We agreed on the plan and we will stick to it", Albus reminded him.<br>"What is the plan? I want to help! They took my hair away, those fucking bastards!"  
>"Not only your hair", sighed Lily, "Also the bones in your legs, they sort of sliced your arms open and I guess they let you drop on the ground a few times."<br>"Sounds nasty. I still wanna hear your plan."  
>"Okay. Here it goes", James grinned, "because it's a damn amazing plan!"<p>

The Slytherin's Quidditch tryout was a few days after Rose had left the Hospital Wing.  
>Of course Scorpius wanted to try whether they would take him or not. Because he wanted to and because it was part of their plan.<br>He shot a glance over his shoulder, relived to see a bit of red hair sticking out from under the tribune.  
>During the last year, the Potters and Weasleys really did become his friends. At least Rose and Albus. And he was on the best way to become friends with James Potter as well. Although he still had to get used to him talking about hair all the time. No matter whose hair, James kept talking about it. About how he liked his own hair, about how he loved Rose' curls, about how awfully styled Scorpius' hair was. But James actually asked him what shampoo he used, because the blond hair always seemed to glow, just like the strawberry blond of Dominique, Louis and Victoire. Scorpius had just smiled and told him the brand of his shampoo. James would figure it out eventually, Scorpius thought.<br>He took a last deep breath before he stepped onto the Quidditch field.  
>There they were. The ones who hated him and the ones he hated. But Scorpius loved Quidditch way too much to let the opportunity slip through his fingers.<br>"What do _you_ want here, Malfoy?" Zabini practically spit his last name out.  
>"Everyone can have a go, am I right? So I am trying out for the position of seeker. "<br>"Good luck with that, blood traitor." The dark haired boy grinned and bent over the box with the Quidditch balls. He unleashed the Bludgers. Before he could even think about ducking away, both of the balls hit him hard in the face.  
>It was not really a pompous start of their prank. They didn't want it to look like one. Scorpius tried hard not to grin. He got on his broom quickly and was quite glad that he wasn't a Chaser, when the game began. It wasn't visible, but Scorpius knew, as soon as they hit the Quaffles, their hands would have invisible paint on them, only getting visible, when getting in touch with water. And it wouldn't get off with water. Or with anything else. Dominique really was awesome with spells.<br>And it continued. A Bludger knocking someone off the broom, the ring of a goal post seeming to small for a Quaffle to fit through.  
>At the end of the day, no-one could deny that something has been weird but even Zabini couldn't put his finger on what exactly has been wrong.<br>"Well, Malfoy, as you're the only Seeker trying out, you get the part. But better be prepared. If you ever tell us off again, we risk losing just to get you back."  
>"Do not worry", Scorpius grinned, "you know, we Slytherins, we are known for cunningness, not for being sneaks."<br>The next morning, Scourpius couldn't do anything else but grin, when he entered the Great Hall together with Rose and Albus. The Chasers' hands, everything and everyone they had touched were coloured in a bright pink. There even seemed to be glitter, when you looked closer.  
>"Your cousin is really a master in spells, Rosie. Tell her, I said it, will you?"<br>"Of course I will." She grinned at him and squeezed his hand.


	10. The Past Won't Go Away

„You know, actually, I am a bit scared of tomorrow's _Defense Against The Dark Arts_ lesson."  
>"Why so, Scorp?" Rose sat up and looked at him.<br>"Because I do not know what shape my Boggart will have."  
>"Oh Scorp…" Rose sighed and slightly stroked his cheek. She looked around the Room of Requirement. The tiny lights, dangling above their heads, filled the room with a soft and shimmery light. The meadow on which Rose and Scorpius were lying was soft and warm, yet still felt like grass rather than a blanket. It was lovely.<br>Rose just loved spending time with Scorpius. But now her wonderful hazel eyes were filled with worry and she frowned, fully caught up in her thoughts.  
>"Maybe…", she slowly said while running her hands though Scorpius hair – which wasn't that easy thanks to all the gel in it! -,"maybe… I don't know. What are you scared of? Apart from waters where you can't see the bottom?"<br>"Well, there are a few things. But none of them can have a proper shape, I think. And you? Do you know what your Boggart will look like?"  
>Rose shook her head.<br>"I have no idea. You know, there are two things I am thinking about because of tomorrow. First of all: I don't want the Slytherins to know my biggest fear. Second: I am glad you and Al are there tomorrow. Because I am really scared. I am scared because I don't know what I am scared of. Does that make any sense?"  
>Scorpius nodded. "Of course it does. It makes perfectly sense, Pumpkin Pie."<br>"Oh, now you're calling me this when you are not making fun of me? No, I really don't want it to become my real nickname. Because you know, I'll call you Cupcake if you do."  
>He chuckled. "Okay, it will not become you nickname, I promise."<br>"Thanks, Scorp." Rose hugged him. "You know, James is really right about your hair. It would be much nicer if you would wear it normally, rather than packed with gel."  
>He pouted, "Elenor said she likes my hair."<br>"Who's Elenor?"  
>"Elenor McDarvy. She asked me out on a date."<br>"Smart girl! You're a great catch! Wait! Did you say yes? Oh, tell me you said yes! I'll slap you if you didn't say yes!"  
>"I did!" Scorpius chuckled, "I am going on a date with her the next Hogsmeade weekend."<br>"Awesome! That is so great! Finally! I knew some day a girl will fully appreciate you."  
>"You fully appreciate me."<br>"Yes. But that's different. I don't want to date you. I don't want to kiss you or have you as my boyfriend or shag you. Although this scenery in today's Room of Requirement would be rather lovely. At least, I guess so. You know, I am not cool. I haven't had sex with 11 and I was never pregnant. So, in nowadays society, I am really uncool. 16 and still a virgin."  
>"Well, so am I. We are both not cool. What's with Albus?"<br>"He and Juliette are a couple for… ehm… for 10 months now. I have no idea if they ever slept with each other. But I hope he didn't! And I hope he'll tell both of us when they did!"  
>"So you want to know how your cousin's first time has been?"<br>"Of course! I know how James' was. And I know how Lily's was."  
>"Lily? But… she is…"<br>"She loved the boy and she talked about it with James and Albus and both of them told her it would be too early but well. She didn't really like it and cried her eyes out. It was during the summer holidays. He dumped her afterwards. Poor Lily. I feel sorry for her. Hope it doesn't happen to me!"  
>"I am sure it will not. You are far too clever. And I think, even when you are in love you will keep thinking about what you are doing. And with whom."<br>"So… you're gonna tell me?" She looked at Scorpius, smiling, "you're gonna tell me how your first time was when it has happened?"  
>"I will. And you are going to tell me?"<br>"Of course!" Rose giggled and kissed his cheek before she sank back into the grass next to Scorpius.  
>"You should really think about what James told you. About your hair. It would look so much better without all the gel."<br>"I will think about it, Rosie."

Neither Rose nor Albus nor Scorpius were very happy when they were sitting in the Great Hall the next morning. By now, Scorpius just met his friends outside, following them to the Gryffindor table. Everyone was perfectly fine with it. Rose loved listening to James, Albus, Lily and Scorpius chatting in the morning. She wasn't much of a morning's person, so she usually kept quiet. But this morning, only Lily and James were talking. The other three were too intimidated by what they would need to face later on the day. Rose was in deep thoughts, starring into her bowl of cereals. The little mermaids and hippogriffs were dancing around in the milk-yogurt mix she usually ate in the mornings. Here and there, Rose spotted a strawberry or a piece of apple. She loved to have fruit in her muesli. Always eat enough in the mornings, her mother used to tell her, eat something nutritious. And something the colour of your hair, her dad always added. And that's why Rose was eating wholemeal-hippogriff-mermaid-shaped-milk-yogurt-muesli with strawberries, apples and sometimes pumpkin every morning.  
>"We should head off now, Rosie."<br>"Hm?" She looked up and her eyes met the gray ones of Scorpius. Sometimes his left eye seemed to have a small brownish spot in it. Whenever he was happy, really happy and relaxed. But now they were full of concern and worry.  
>"Oh yes, you're right. Let's go." She smiled at Scorpius and stood up. Without further notice, she walked towards the class, followed by Albus and Scorpius.<br>"She is really scared, am I right?"  
>"Oh hell she is!", Albus nodded, "bloody scared. It won't be nice for either of us."<p>

"Alright, students! We start with the alphabet. Just try to concentrate and pronounce everything correctly." The professor smiled at them and stepped aside as he freed the Boggart for the first student he called.  
>There were spiders, footballs, Quaffles, Grannys, all sorts of different Boggarts.<br>Scorpius glanced over to Rose. She was biting her lower lip, her eyes were sparkling. It took him a while to realize that mix of feelings. She was concerned, worried, excited and anxious at the same time. Oh yes, his Rosie was always up for something new, something thrilling, even if it scared her.  
>"Scorpius Malfoy. Please step forward. Concentrate and point your wand at the Boggart."<br>He nodded and did as he was told. He closed his eyes for a second and took a deep breath.  
>"Ready, Mr. Malfoy?"<br>"Ready." He opened his eyes again to face his own Boggart.  
>The black thing quickly changed into the form of a man. An old man, with long spider-like fingers and hair as white as his face. He looked used, as if he wouldn't fit into his own skin, his own body.<br>_HE_ was something Scorpius clearly did not expect.  
>It took him a while to recover from his shock before he spoke the one word which changed the old man into a marionette, dancing a silly dance. Scorpius didn't feel like laughing, but he heard Rose chuckling behind him and her laugh was so infectious that he had to laugh along.<br>"Well done, Mr. Malfoy!" The professor smiled at him and send him back to the others only to call the next student to him.  
>"So, who was he?", Albus whispered as soon as Scorpius was next to him.<br>"My grandfather. Lucius Malfoy."  
>Albus was just about to say something as the professor called his name.<br>His Boggart wasn't something really interesting and Albus knew that it would have the shape of a kappa. He was really afraid of those water demons but mastered the spell perfectly.  
>"Well done, Mr. Potter! Must be your genes. Your father and brother were as good as you", the professor smiled at him.<br>"Yeah… thanks." Albus sighed and went back to his friends. Surname associations. Awful.  
>Rose smiled at him softly and quickly cuddled her cousin before it was her turn. She knew how he felt. Scorpius knew as well.<br>"Miss Weasley, it is your turn now", the professor announced.  
>"Alright. I'll try my best." She smiled nervously and stepped forward.<br>Rose tried to concentrate but she was thrown of as soon as the boggart changed his appearance.  
>"Professor… this is not what I am scared of. It's a rat. I am not scared of a rat. Maybe the boggart is broken."<br>"It can't be broken, Miss Weasley."  
>"Look!", someone pointed at the boggart," it's changing again!"<br>Rose turned towards the boggart and gasped.  
>"What the…" Her boggart was now a small man. Fat, with an overbite, nearly bald. She didn't know what to do. Suddenly her brain was empty, her lips couldn't form the words she had to say, couldn't for the words for the spell. The man moved closer and closer towards Rose. And suddenly, suddenly everything was dark and cold.<p> 


	11. Unpleasant Surprises

When she opened her eyes, everything was a bit blurry. Not again, she thought. Yes. She had been unconscious. In front of the whole class. In front of her teacher and in front of all the Slytherins.

"Darling? Are you alright?"

"Mum? Is that you?" Rose rubbed her eyes to get a clear view, "Mum! What are you doing here?"

"I am looking after you. How are you?"

„I am slighlty upset." Rose sighed and looked at her parents. She was sitting in her professor's bureau after she fainted. She didn't manage to beat the boggart. And not even the best chocolate she has ever tasted could make her feel any better. Although her Dad had offered her her favourite one! "I am really sorry; I didn't want to disappoint you."

"You could never disappoint us, Rosie." Ron smiled at his daughter. "We are here because Seamus sent us an owl to tell us about your boggart." He stroked her cheek and lightly kissed her forehead. She really looked like her mother, even though her hair was red. She had the same eyes. Not the same, hers were lighter, more golden. But they had the same strength, she same knowledge, paired with his pursuit to adventures.

"Professor Finnigan wrote you? Oh no… and everyone in class saw me fainting! This is just so embarrassing, Daddy. It truly is. I am even more than slightly upset. I am fucking embarrassed."

"You don't have to. We did much more embarrassing things. And we are a bit worried, you know?"

"Yes, we are." Hermione nodded and took her daughter's hand. "Maybe you were too young. Maybe we did something wrong when we told you, James and Albus all about Peter Pettigrew and what how he was responsible for Lily's and James' death."

"Don't worry, Mum. It is all fine. I am glad you showed us. It is just… I think I am afraid of Peter Pettigrew because he betrayed his friends. Because I am afraid to be betrayed. I think, Peter Pettigrew is just the form for a fear which doesn't have an actual form. Because betrayal _is_ Peter Pettigrew. He was their friend. And he was your rat! He betrayed you and your family! That is just awful…"

"Oh Darling…" Her mother smiled gently and took her in her arms. "You sound so mature and all grown up. Where is my little baby girl?"

"I am right here. And I will always be. You didn't need to come, really. I am fine, Mum. Much better already. I am sure Al and Scorp will be here any minute to cheer me up with some of Fred's and George's stuff. I know they sent a package to James the other day."

"Are you sure?" Hermione looked a bit worried and stroked her daughter's cheek.

"Yes, Mum. I am perfectly fine. See, there are Al and Scorp." Rose smiled towards her two friends, who were entering the Hospital Wing.

"Hey Aunt Hermione, hey Uncle Ron. How are you?" Albus smiled at them and shook their hands, "is everything alright at home? Dad told me you are going on a mission?"

"Indeed we are. Will take us about two weeks. Now that all of you kids are in Hogwarts we can go on longer missions than before."

"So that Mum and Aunt Ginny are all alone instead of having a child with them?" Rose chuckled, "well, that is boys' logic. James would do the exact same thing! He always goes on trips when all his girlfriend's friends' are gone. You all think being alone is fine for us girls, don't you? What do you think are we doing when no-one's home? Running around naked?"

"Well, I know for sure that your mum does not walk around completely naked. She doesn't even walk around in nothing but her underwear."

"I am sophisticated, my dearest Ronald. I am not like you."

"Please, Mum... I really don't wanna hear stories about either of you two being naked."

"You started it, Rosie!" Ron exclaimed and hugged his daughter, "I am delighted to see that you are feeling much better. So I think it is time to head off now. You boys take care of her, won't you?"

"Of course we will, Mr. Weasley."

"Fantastic!" Ron kissed his daughter's forehead and said goodbye to the boys before leaving the teenagers all on their own.

"So... you are alright, Rosie?" Scorpius hesitantly asked.

"Sure I am! As alright as a buttercup."

"And how alright can a buttercup be, Pumpkin Pie?"

"I have no idea", Rose giggled and cuddled the blond boy next to her. He just smelled so fantastic! He couldn't believe she never really noticed all the scents coming from Scorpius. There was – of course – the smell of his shampoo. Something like... peach? Maybe apricot. She could never tell those two apart. But it didn't really matter. All that mattered was that his hair just smelled incredibly fantastic. Then there was the smell of Scorpius _himself_. Rose couldn't actually describe it. Somehow warm and comfortable but at the same time cool and controlled. Could one even smell controlled? How would it smell? Like Scorpius? And if she smelled _controlled_ somewhere else, would she say _controlled_ to it as well? Anyway. He smelled like it. No discussion. Rose liked the scent of his clothes. Somehow they smelled different than hers or all the others, although she knew that the same washing powder, the same washing machine was used for his and hers and Albus'. It was still different but enjoyable different. His clothes smelled fresher and like they have just been washed and not washed and then stuffed into a dark wardrobe until a week later. How could she not have noticed it before?

"I want to go. May I? Please?" Rose pouted. "You all know how much I detest it here. The food is awful and there is hardly anyone around and I don't like sleeping here all on my own."

"Well, Rose, who are you sleeping with in your bedroom when you're not alone there?" Albus asked, winking at her.

Rose laughed and threw a pillow at his head. "You can be sorta stupid sometimes, dearest cousin! There are people around to whom I can talk before I go to sleep. There are none here! I need to talk to myself and that is getting all boring after 16 years of doing so!"

"Oh Rose, you can be so funny sometimes." Albus grinned and messed up her hair a bit. "Dh! By the way, Dimitri sent you a letter." 

"He did? That's not a _by the way_! That's a _Rose, I have super-mega-awesome-fantastic-megastic-wonderful-exciting news for you!_ Where is it? Give it to me! How do you even know?"

"Well, you know, Rose, we are in the same house and this afternoon there was an owl knocking on one of the common room windows. With your letter from Dimitri. There you go." Albus handed her the letter or rather tried not to rip it into pieces because he was scared to not letting go quickly enough after Rose snatched it out of his hands.

He carefully obeyed his best friend watching his cousin reading the letter. Albus didn't see Rose but from the way Scorpius' face was filled with disgust he could tell that Dimitri must have written something which was very pleasant for Rose. Why didn't he just tell her how he felt about her? Everyone around them could see that those two just belonged to each other. Everyone but Rose and Scorpius themselves.


	12. Spits And Slaps

„Scorp! Hey! Wait for me!" Rose hurried up to catch her friend just outside the Potion's classroom. "Guess what!"

"What?" He sighed softly. Rose and he haven't been on good terms the last few months. Neither of them knew why. It had just developed over the time. Maybe because Scorpius had a girlfriend and she wasn't very keen on Rose. So Scorpius tried to manage his time but he was not good in it at all. There had to be time for Melina, time for Rose and Albus, time for school, time for Quidditch, and time for himself. How did all the popular kids manage to time their days so perfectly?

"You should guess!" She pouted and stroke one of her auburn curls behind her ear. It was really amazing how good her hair looked! Redheads were not Scorpius' type, he usually looked at brunettes. Rose' hair was sort of brunette-ish. It was not completely red, it was auburn. Rose taught him the name of her haircolour. Her dad was ginger, her mum had chocolate-brown hair, her brother's hair was ginger as well and hers was auburn. Her eyes were hazel. He knew that for sure, because Rose had told him several times whenever he had called them brown. Yes, Rose was really accurate about colours.

"Okay. Let me try… You and Albus got a parcel by Fred?"

"Nope. Try again! But the direction is correct!"

"So you got a parcel?"

"Indeed I did."

"By… oh, I know that smile on your face, Pumpkin Pie! A parcel by Dimitri."

"Yes! Come! I need to show you! Lily and Albus are already there!"

"Where?"

"Shrieking Shack. Because I need to show it to all of you!"

Rose took her friend's hand and nearly dragged him to their desired destination. Albus and Lily were already waiting inside. Lily was inspecting the parcel which was lying on the table in the middle of the room. The Shack was really comfortable by now, Rose' cousins and Ted Lupin – especially Ted – had put a lot of effort into it. The rooms were bright, the bathroom was a real wellness oasis and there were flowers and plants everywhere. Scorpius really liked it in there. When he had been to the Room of Requirement after the first time in the Shack, his room looked exactly like the living room he was in now. Scorp greeted his friends and placed himself next to Albus on the sofa.

"You're not with Melina today?"

"Rose kidnapped me before I could even think of informing Melina. But we do not have a fixed appointment for this afternoon, so it is fine. And you know, just because I have a girlfriend does not mean I cannot meet up with you guys."

"But you rarely did in the last few weeks."

"I know and I am sorry, Al. Look, I am just really tired and I have no idea how to deal with all of this. Friends, training, girlfriend, family… oh! Rose, you will not believe it! Mum wrote me this morning. She is two months pregnant!"

"She is? Oh, that is wonderful! I need to write her and tell her how great it is! When is her due date?"

"I have no idea but I suppose in June since she is two months pregnant, like I said. She wrote that after talking to you about it last summer, she talked to Dad and they agreed that a second child would be perfect."

"I am so happy for her! I need to write her as soon as we are out of here! But first the parcel." Rose smiled at the three of them, "so, Dimitri sent it to me. He is coming for our Winter Ball. And he sent me a dress he would love me to wear."

Under the critical eyes of her friends she took out the dress.  
>"Isn't it just lovely? I can totally imagine dancing with Dimitri in it."<p>

"I can totally imagine him staring at your cleavage all the time", muttered Scorpius, "and I can totally imagine him ripping it off of you and shagging you all night long because that is why a guy would send you a dress like that."

"It is not that slutty", Albus told him quietly.

"Look at it", the blonde said softly, "it does not even cover her knees and she better does not bend over or everyone will see her undies."

"I think you are a bit jealous." Albus sighed and made sure that Rose was still busy with showing Lily the dress and talking about Dimitri before he continued talking. "I know, you've got a girlfriend and all but it's Rose and you're so protective of her. And you don't like Dimi. Well, to be exact, you hate him."

"So what? That is not the reason. I just do not like the dress. It does not suit Rose at all!"

"Yeah, sure." Albus rolled his eyes.

Scorpius was quite happy that the ball was not coming up until two weeks later. It was their first ball, because only the sixth and seventh years were allowed to go. The blonde was only there because Rose asked him to. She had asked him with those big hazel eyes of hers. He just could not resist them. But it was worth it. Rose looked fabulous! Although the dress really was way too short for this sort of occasion. It fit her perfectly. Actually, it did not. It did not fit her at all and still, it was perfect.

"She looks great, doesn't she?", Albus grinned as he nudged Scorpius, "My cousin, I mean. Not my girlfriend. Well, my girlfriend of course but Rose looks fabulous."

"No. She looks like a slut. This is not the right occasion to wear a dress like this. It is sexy and Rose is not sexy."

"Don't let her hear that. So wants to be sexy, like every girl does."

"But she is not sexy."

Scorpius sighed. Of course was Rose sexy. But not in that kind of way. Not in a way such a short dress would make her sexy or stress her sexiness. Rose was flowery, she was light and free. She was a thinker as well as a feeler. She was so different, so exclusive. A slutty dress in pale pink did not capture all of that. It just screamed: _Look at how little this bloke knows me and my style._ Scorpius could have picked out tons of dresses which would have fit her much much better. But no. She chose Dimitri instead. At least she was happy. He could see it from the way her perfectly hazel eyes sparkled, from the way she smiled and the way she walked. When she was extremely happy, Rose had a little wiggle to her walk. She was happy because she was with Dimitri. The young Slytherin could only guess that this ball was definitely going to be very long and very exhausting. Maybe, if Dimitri behaved badly, Rose would finally see how much of an arrogant show-off he was. Maybe then he and Rose would stop fancying each other. Maybe Scorpius himself could help her and their friendship would start to grow again. He really hated it this was. Always something between them but no-one really knew what exactly the problem was.

"Just look at her. She really looks slutty."

"Melina, shut it", Albus hissed at her, "you are Scorpius' girlfriend, you should be supportive of his friends."

"She is a slut. You can tell me whatever you want, she is. Getting a boy who graduated to come to our Yule Ball? He didn't even go here! She wants to get laid, I tell you. She's gonna get laid."

"Melina, enough. She is my best friend, she is Al's cousin, do not speak about her in that kind of way. Not with her friends and family around you."

"If you would be her friend, my love, she would've talked to you the last weeks. She hardly did. And you know that."

"I have had it." Scorpius stood up and sighed. "Melina, I am breaking up with you. I cannot take it anymore. You hate Rose, I get it. But I… she is my best friend in the world. No offense, Al, but Rose really is everything for me. If you cannot stand her and if you keep talking badly about her, I have no other option than to break up."

"You.. you're breaking up with me on the fucking Yule Ball? Scorpius Malfoy, you are disgusting! First you fuck me, then you break up with me? Because of a fucking Weasley? One who isn't even remotely interested in you?" By now, Melina was shouting, she didn't even notice the people starring at them. She didn't care. Everyone should know what an arse Scorpius was. "You fuck me and you dump me and why? Because I tell the truth! Because I know what a slut your little friend is! You are a true Malfoy."

The second Melina spit in front of Scorpius' feet, the second she was slapped hard in the face.

"You don't talk to Scorpius like that. Did you hear me? You don't talk to my best friend like some crazy bitch. And you don't talk about me like that!" Rose stared at her, furiously, until she gripped Scorpius' arm and dragged him out of the Great Hall, away from the crowd, away from the stares and the nasty comments.


	13. Firsts

"So, why didn't you tell me?"

Rose had changed out of her dress, into some very comfortable sweatpants and a way too big sweatshirt. It was nice, she felt good in it and she didn't have any intentions in going back to the Ball. Yes, she didn't say good-bye to Dimi, but she was sure that Al would explain why Rose had to leave and wouldn't come back. The red-head sat down next to Scorpius on the huge pillow landscape she had whished for.

"Why didn't you tell me that you already had your first time?"

"When was I supposed to tell you? Whenever I tried to approach you, whenever I tried to talk to you, you started babbling about Dimitri, about how awesome he is, about how glad you are that you are dating, officially dating. You know I cannot stand him. You know why. I am happy that you are happy, yes. I just cannot stand him. And he is never there for you. He still travels the world. He is here today, yes. And I bet you, he was expecting to get laid tonight. I cannot blame you. I would expect it, too, if I would travel from America to England for just one evening to be with my girlfriend. But apart from that... he is not here because he genuinely cares about you. He hardly writes you letters but you still talk about him all the time. What was I supposed to do? _Yeah Rose, nice of you telling me all about your boyfriend's hair but I shagged Melina_. You know me. I would not do it like that. And it really hurt that I could not talk to you about my first time. I talked to Albus about it. Even to James. Which was weird. Really weird. But it was nice, having a boys' chat. But they are not you. They are not my best friend."

"Tell me know. Please tell me. I'd love to know. I have been a bit busy with myself lately; you have been a bit busy with yourself lately. We both made mistakes, didn't we? So tell me. And then I'll tell you about my first time. Because... well, last time Dimi visited I slept with him. In the Shack. I am sorry I didn't tell you. Same reasons you didn't tell me."

The look on his face nearly broke her heart. Yes, she was disappointed that he didn't tell her about his first time. But clearly not as much as he was. She could always read him like a book. As he could read her. It was awful. The pain in his eyes, the light grey suddenly seeming to be darker.

"Scorp, I am sorry... I didn't even tell you he visited me. Last time we could go to Hogsmeade he was here. I am so so sorry... Please don't look at me like that..." Rose bit her lower lip and hugged Scorpius carefully. "Don't be mad at me. You know I love you, you know I am your best friend and you are mine."

"I do not think so." The blonde softly pushed her away from him. "We both made mistakes because we do not trust each other anymore. And if that is missing, there is no proper foundation for our friendship. It worked because all the time we were perfectly honest with each other. Somehow this is not the case anymore. I think we should just cut it off here. At this point, there is no return to what we have had before. I am going to miss you, Pumpkin Pie. But it will not work anymore. There is not enough trust. Not enough honesty."

Scorpius kissed her forehead lightly and stood up. "We just take a little pause. Holidays start in a week. I will be over at the Potters' house for Boxing Day, with my parents. As far as I know, your family will come, too. We try to figure out what we want, alright? You will see, everything is going to be fine, although your dad probably is going to kill me, because I do not make you happy anymore. It is not the end of our friendship. But we both have to deal with other stuff right now. Boyfriends, ex-girlfriends, the future, what our potential job will be, Quidditch, Christmas, New Year, family issues, essays... we have a lot on our minds."

Rose didn't know what was worse. That he left her or that it was the first time she cried about a boy. The second he closed the door she broke down completely. It was the first time she was about to lose a friend, the first time she curled up in a mountain of pillows and cry until she fell asleep. She didn't know if seeing him every morning at the breakfast table would help her to get over the non-talking fact. It was the first time she didn't eat in the mornings. She didn't eat the whole week until the Christmas Holidays started. She didn't sit with her cousins on the train because they were with Scorpius and she couldn't handle the pain. It was the first time she was with non-family-members on the train. It was the first time her dad was really worried about his little baby girl. But they had a good talk. Rose even told him and her mum about her first time, about Dimitri and why she didn't speak to her best friend anymore. It was a bit awkward. Of course she didn't tell them all the details. She just told them that she had have sex with Dimitri and that she didn't tell Scorpius. Nothing more. It was most awkward for Hugo, who had to sit with them at the dinner table. And bloody hell was Rose nervous about meeting the Malfoys on Boxing Day.

Scorpius was nearly as nervous as Rose was. He was scared, in fact. Ron tolerated him as long as Scorp made Rose happy. That is what Rose had told him. But now he did not make Rose happy anymore. He made her sad, he made her cry. But she also made him sad, she broke his heart. Still, he was very afraid of Mr. Weasley's reaction. Especially because the first thing Ron did – after greeting everyone – was leading Scorpius into Albus' bedroom to talk to him.

"No need to be nervous, Scorpius", Ron smiled at him as he sat down next to him on the bed. "I am not mad at you or something like that. You are a good boy and I want to tell you that I really hope you and Rose can talk it all out. You make her happy and you are good for her. We all know that. Even though it isn't perfect right now. You know, Hermione and me, we didn't talk for most of our third year in Hogwarts. And we always had huge fights. It's normal and it's going to be alright in a few weeks. You know that and Rose knows it, too. We are going to have a nice Christmas Dinner now. I am so hungry! Hermione wouldn't let me eat before we came here. As if I would eat less, if I had eaten at home! Oh and if you want to, you can come and stay with us after dinner."

"Mr. Weasly, I really have no idea what to say. I would love to come and stay with you and your family, but it is up to Rose. If she wants me to be there, I will be. If she is not comfortable with it, it is completely fine. I appreciate you talking to me. I absolutely do, because I know that you are a huge part of Rose's life and I appreciate that all of you, your whole family, can see past the feud and the past. I am glad my dad can do it. I am so glad I have your kids and your nephews and nieces as friends."

Ron had to laugh. "You are such a charmer, it is great! No wonder they all like you so much. Can we go and have dinner then?"

"Of course." Scorpius grinned and followed Ron back to the rest into the dining room. He would have never expected Ron to be so grateful and nice to him. Well, he knew he was a nice man and all but it was the first time Scorpius could really appreciate it.


	14. The Future Will Come

Christmas and New Year's Eve went pretty well. Scorpius and Rose talked about their problem, told each other about their first times. Still, it wasn't like it has been. They weren't as close as before the Winter Ball. They weren't, as Albus liked to put it, worshipping the ground the other walked on. It wasn't until nearly the end of the school year.

"Hey Scorp." She kissed him on the cheek and sat down next to him, underneath the willow. It was sunny and warm, the perfect time to learn outside by the lake. Rose still didn't get why Scorpius liked it there so much since he was afraid of waters where he could not see the bottom. It didn't make sense! And usually Scorpius made perfectly sense. Maybe he just liked the view and the sun and the willow. Because willows were awesome, Rose thought. They had something mysterious about them, something fantastic and yet calming. Maybe because the only two personified willows Rose knew of where the Whomping Willow and Grandmother Willow from _Pocahontas._ The Whomping Willow protected the Shack, so it was mysterious and scary and dangerous. Grandmother Willow was protective and clever, calming and wise.

"What is going on in your freaky little red-head, Pumpkin Pie?"

"Oh, just stuff." Rose hugged him and made herself comfortable, laying her head into his lap. "Stuff about trees and flowers and Muggle movies. About how a pineapple isn't a single fruit but a group of berries that fused together. You know, I dumped Dimi."

"You what?" He looked at her, surprised. Happy nonetheless but he was really surprised. "How come? How do you feel? Are you alright?"

"Well, I met him in Hogsmeade today. I saw him and I knew... I don't know. I just knew it was over. I didn't want anymore. The whole crappy long-distance relationship, the way he talked about the countries he's been to. Awful. You were right. He is a show-off, he has always been one. I was just so blind."

"You were not blind. You were in love and that is perfectly fine but I am glad he is not your boyfriend anymore. And you are okay?"

"Well... it is alright. I've told Lily and Al, still need to tell James and Hugo and Louis. I think Lily and Louis will be a bit sad. And Al, too. He really likes Dimi. Everyone likes him! Not you, I know. That's fine. You don't need to deal with him anymore." She sighed and cuddled into his lap. "This isn't awkward, is it?"

Scorpius had to laugh. "Well, let us say... It would not surprise me if it would become awkward. I can see into your cleavage, it is a very nice view and your head constantly keeps rubbing against something special. I am just a man."

Rose rolled her eyes and sat up again, hugging him tightly. "Okay, nevermind! I respect your body's reaction!"

"I am glad you do, Pumpkin Pie! So, what do you say, we have a little party to cheer you up this evening, hm? Your cousins, you and me, the Shreiking Shack and some butterbeer."

"Nah. Just you and me, Room of Requirements and some firewhiskey sounds much better."

" Rose Nymphadora Weasley, what are your dirty little plans for tonight?"

"Nothing!" She smiled at him her innocent smile with a twist. He knew it so well. Whenever she had plans for revenge, for pranks, even for just sneaking into the kitchen, she smiled said smile. But he was glad. She did not seem to be too devastated about the break-up. Well, her wanting to drink firewhiskey was kind of worrying. Usually she did not get wasted. Not on purpose. Okay, on New Year's Eve she was very drunk. And she nearly made out with Dimitri in front of everyone. He was quite sure they fucked later on. Well, it actually did not bother him too much since he was with some girl he met on the party and got laid, too.

"Of course, nothing. I know your nothing, my love. But we will do it, no problem at all. As long as I am allowed to wish for the room. Would you like to learn with me for our tests? Right now I am stuck with Transfiguration. I need to find Al to help me with this. It is really hard. Can you help with the animals, please? You know I am no good with them."

"Well, you were amazing with the hippogriff. And you did quite well with most of the other animals. Have you decided what you want to do in the future? Because I have been thinking about it quite a lot, actually. And it is so hard! Two hearts beating, can't decide which one to listen to."

"Tell me. I guess I know what the problem is, but tell me." The Slytherin kissed her cheek and leaned back into the soft and warm grass, watching carefully how Rose lowered her head and lay it down on his chest. Scorpius' fingers traced lightly through her thick curls, twirling some around his finger. "Tell me and I promise we will find a solution."

"Well, we all know I want to work with mystical creatures. Badly. I have three options for internships. First, I could do an internship here, with Hagrid. Here are so many different creatures and I could explore the lake and the forest and everything! I'd love that but I don't know if I really want to stay at Hogwarts. I have the feeling I need to get out of here, away from my cousins to be myself. I could also work at the Ministry. Like my parents. Like your parents. Like the Potters. Ugh. I don't want to work where half my family works. It would be the same as staying in Hogwarts, just with grown-ups. I could also go to Charlie in Romania and do some work with the dragons. He offered it to me last Summer. And I would love to go there! But I don't know if dragons are what I desire. If it isn't too little variety in animals for me. And also, what do I want to do as a job? Do I want to be a dragon trainer? Do I want to live in Romania? So far away from my family? I could also work in Scotland but the dragon sector there really is tiny. But do I want to work in Hogwarts? Where it is so damn hard to have a family of my own? Do I want to work at the ministry? Do I want to go out and get animals out of Muggles' houses and wizards' houses? Sounds rather boring, doesn't it? I have no idea, Scorp! I really haven't!"

"Okay, I get the problem. You can do your internship at Hogwarts in the Summer holidays. None of your cousins will be here, there is no pressure for class, nothing. You can experience everything quite nicely and are still able to go to Hogsmeade on your own to meet up with Al and me. You have a bit of Rosie-time, without relatives, to figure out what you want. And if I were you, I would try to work at the ministry for say three months. And then go to Charlie afterwards and do an internship there. Three months, too. It is not that long but long enough to get to know everything and to discover whether or not you like the job. And if you do not like any of it, we will find something new. I am sure there are plenty of jobs where you can work with animals. Health care for magical creatures. But there you only have the boring ones, no hippogriffs or kappas or other special and extraordinary beasts."

"I know! I want adventure! I want family. I don't want my relatives! I want a save job! Why is that so hard to get? A save but adventurous job where I don't work with any of my family members but where it is possible for me to have a family of my own? That should be easy!"

Scorpius giggled. "Yeah, sure. Sounds realistic."

She nudged his side and kissed his chin. "Oh, you have a little stubble. I like it! You should let it grow a bit. A nice three-day-stubble." Rose giggled upon the sceptical look in his eyes. "Alright, Mr. Know-It-All, what job did you come up with, huh?"

"I am not quite sure. I thought about a profession as potions teacher in Hogwarts but... well, you are here all year. Try to meet a girl and marry her and have a family when you can see each other only on Christmas and during summer holidays. Sounds like a pretty hard relationship. I also thought about becoming a healer. That would be nice. Working in St. Mungos, helping people, brewing health potions for them. I consider that. What do you think?"

"Hm. It sounds perfect for you. No stress, everything is controlled but you still have a certain amount of uncertainty. Just like you love your life to be. And all the little girls would love going to sexy doctor Malfoy."

"That sounds nice if you say it but it would sound very very creepy if a little girl would say it. A healer it is. I am going to be a healer." He nodded, quite satisfied with himself. "My mum will be very proud that I have made such a responsible decision. You know, I can hardly wait for the baby to come. Six weeks to go. And then I will be a big brother with a tiny baby sister."

Rose giggled and stroke through his hair. It was really damn soft and shiny. How could it be so awesome? She knew James used the same shampoo but James' hair was not as shiny and shimmering as Scorpius'. Louis' hair was, though. All a bit weird. "You are going to be a fantastic big brother. Does she have a name yet?"

"Oh yes. Her name is going to be Cassiopeia Narcissa Malfoy. Cassiopeia, because it is a star constellation, like Scorpius, like Sirius, like Bellatrix – not a good example, I know, but still – and Cassiopeia is also the mother of Andromeda in the Greek mythology. And my mum really likes Andromeda Tonks. They have met a few times because my mum gets along really nicely with my grandmother Narcissa. After the War, grandma started to meet her sister again and my mum has been with her a few times. It is family, after all. So is Ted Lupin. I mean, he is basically my dad's cousin. And Narcissa because of my grandma, because she saved Al's dad. And... you will love this point." He smiled and stroked her cheek lightly. "My mum said, a narcissus is a flower, as is a rose. She wanted to dedicate part of my sister's name to you, because you are the reason she will be in this world."

"Awwww, really? That is so cute! I need to write her! That is so fucking cute, Scorp! It really is amazing, I love your mother! And now I am crying, because I am so fucking overwhelmed."

He chuckled and cuddled Rose. "No need to cry, Pumpkin Pie. You will see the baby girl as soon as she is born. It is all arranged and I talked to the headmaster. He said it is okay."

"Well, of course he did. It's Neville Longbottom."


	15. A Firewhiskey Deal

„Mylady, come on in." Scorpius grinned and held the door open for Rose to enter the Room of Requirements.

"Thank you very much, Mylord. I organized the nourishments for our gathering." Rose giggled, kissed his cheek and flitted into the room, put down the food and bottles of firewhiskey.

"What are your plans? Three bottles? Rosie, this is insane."

"I am sad." She sighed and hugged the blonde. Gosh, he just smelled so amazing. It wasn't his shampoo, James didn't smell like that. It must be his own scent. Warm and comfortable and hot and close. "I really am sad that my relationship ended. Dimi was lovely and I really had such a huge crush on him. I might have been in love. Well… probably not. Not really in love. Just infatuated. It still hurts like hell, Cupcake. It does and I don't know why."

"Well, he was the first boy you slept with." Scorpius kissed her head and stroked her back to calm her down a bit. "You have been together for 7 months. That is an awfully long time. Especially for our young age. You are only sixteen and a heartbroken girl."

Scorpius was a bit surprised as Rose suddenly started crying. He drew her even closer and stroked her hair. "Rosie, Pumpkin Pie... there is no need to cry. Why are you crying?"

"Because you are right!", she sobbed, "you are so damn right! I am heartbroken! But I am not allowed to be!"

"Why should you not be allowed to be sad? Of course you are."

"No! Don't you get it? I am the one who ended the relationship. I should not be sad, because it was my decision."

"So what? Oh Rose, you can be sad even if you ended it. That does not mean you have to be cold and strong about it. You are not cold. You are strong, yes. But not when it comes to your feelings. You are such an amazing young woman, so full of love and live and laughter. You are allowed to be sad. It is okay."

Rose nodded softly and wiped away some tears. "Okay. You forgot to say that I am pretty."

"You are pretty. The prettiest girl in this room. Even the prettiest person in this room."

"That is not exactly a compliment." The red-head chuckled and kissed him on the nose. "But it is still very nice of you. I appreciate it and now I want to eat and drink some firewhiskey, pretty please."

"Well, sit down and I will get you something. And cry your heart out, if you feel the need to do so." He softly pushed her down on the pile of pillows and handed her a box of tissues.

Scorpius was really glad that Rose stopped crying rather quickly. They had sandwiches and a bottle of firewhiskey.

"Rose, you know what I always wondered?" Scorpius emptied the bottle and opened a new one. "Do you have a spell to stop your period? I mean, Muggles cannot do it. You poor girls have your menstruation every month. Do you witches have a spell for that?"

She frowned and shook her head. "You do have weird thoughts, my love. We don't have a spell, no. Are you a bit drunk, Cupcake?"

"A tiny bit. So no spell? But we have protection spells! That is great. No condoms, no pill. Easy."

"As long as you do them correctly. Imagine pronouncing it incorrectly and then boom! Pregnant. No good. So I prefer using condoms because I don't want to take hormones. You never know. Not with 16. Maybe when I am older and grown-up and live in my own flat. But the spells still are better than the pill."

"Is it weird that we talk about stuff like that?"

"Nah, not really." Rose giggled. "I talked about stuff like that with James and Al, so it's fine. We're friends, friends talk about everything! And I know, if I have a question about boys, I'll ask you. We should make an asking game! What do you think?"

"What sort of questions? We know everything about each other."

"Well, no. We hardly know any sexual stuff. What we like in the other sex, what physical appearance, you know."

"That sounds a bit childish. But why not. I am drunk enough for something like that but not too drunk to go down a road I would not want to go."

"Not yet." Rose beamed at him and kissed his forehead. "And for every question we don't want to answer, we have to take a sip from the bottle."

"Glad we do not need to take off our clothes." Scorp rolled his eyes but nodded. "Alright. You start."

"Yay! Awesome! Okay, let me think... Your favourite hair colour for girls?"

"I have a thing for brunettes."

"Really?" She giggled. The alcohol really made her girly and even more giggle-ish than she already was. "Brown hair? Like your mum!"

Scorpius made a grimace. "Do not say that, please. I do not want to hear that I have a thing for girls who look like my mum. That is creepy."

"A bit! Did you know, polar bears are all left-handed. I like left-hands. Hugo is left-handed. Left-handed people are more likely to be gay. But I don't think my brother's gay. Louis is, though. And Roxy. But she's bi, so not gay. Sorry! Misinformation!"

"It is okay!" Scorpius grinned. "And what about you? Which hair colour do you prefer?"

"Well, I really love blond. But a proper blond. Your blond. Not such a stupid ash blond. I really don't like that. But your blond is the most amazing blond I have ever seen. It is even more special than your father's. It has this... I don't know. I love it as much as I love Dom's hair."

"Does not surprise me. It is the Veela blood, you know?"

"Of course I know. Dom is quarter Veela. Vic and Louis, too. Their hair is amazing! I just don't get why... oh. Oh. You never told me! You are part Veela? That is awesome!"

"Well, my mum is half Veela. So yes, I am quarter Veela. Do not tell James, right? It is just so much fun to see him figuring out why my hair is more awesome than his although he does everything the way I do."

"But... yours wasn't like that at the beginning, was it?"

"No, because I did not want anyone to know. You know it sort of shines and glows in a very subtle way. That is why I had so much gel in it. To cover it up. I did not want to stand out."

"Well, I love your hair like it is now. You have really grown into your skin since I properly know you." Rose kissed his cheek. "It is so great and I love it."

"That is the reason why I leave it like this. Because James convinced me to try it and because you love it so much and I got a lot of positive feedback from all of your cousins and friends."

"That is great! So, what is the part you like best about your body? Not your personality, your body. Not your hair then, I guess."

"Not, not my hair. Honestly, I have no idea. I am not really comfortable with my body. I am a sixteen year old boy. Which sixteen year old is really confident? But if I have to pick a part, I would say my hands. I like how they look, because they are manly and still elegant. Weird?"

"Not at all."

"What part of my body do you like most?"

"I guess I have to say your eyes. I simply love them, they are drop-dead gorgeous. And I can read them like a book. I have never seen eyes like yours. They are amazing. Oh and I love your back. You in shorts, topless, from behind... it's a dream come true. Your back is like you described your hands: manly but still very elegant and lovely to look at."

"So my eyes, my hands and my back are amazing. Good to know."

"And don't forget your hair! What do you like best about me? About my whole me."

"Your voice. Your voice is adorable. I could listen to you all day every day. Simply amazing."

"Really? My voice? I like that. That is something else, something special." She smiled at him. "But we really have to start with the fun questions! Those were easy-peasy-lemon-squeezy."

"Oh, okay, if you want to. It is my turn, so... what was the best sex you have had so far?"

"Well, obviously with Dimi, because I've only had sex with him. We did it against a wall one time and that was great! On New Year's Eve. The other times were all missionary style. It is lovely and very good for me as a beginner. But I know I want to try out other things, too. What about you? Well, with how many girls did you even sleep?"

"You know that. With Melina, with the girl on New Year's Eve and with Carly."

"Who was the best?"

"I do not know. It was only twice with Melina, so I was very very uncomfortable and nervous. I did not really feel comfortable with Carly, either. Might have been the one at the party. But that is surely because I was really drunk and do not remember too much about it."

"Do you even know her name?"

"No... was it Amber? I like the name. Was it hers?"

"I think it was Ashley. But I have no idea, honestly." She laughed and hugged him. "What would you like to try? So, sexually seen."

"I think I am not that adventurous. Sex in the shower and in the bath tub. Against the wall sounds nice, too. And I really want to try it when I cannot see. Not with the light shut off but blindfolded. All the other senses become so much stronger when you cannot see and that must be amazing. But I think all of that has to wait until after graduation. Hogwarts is not the greatest place to have sex."

"Do you even know how many people had sex in the Shrieking Shack? Ginny and Harry for sure! Me and Dimi for sure! And I know that James had his first time there because poor Hugo accidentally surprised him as he wanted to show his friends the Shack in his first year."

"Poor little Hugo. It must have been quite of a shock for him!"

"Yeah, he wasn't really happy about it. Neither was James. So now the Weasleys and Potters and Ted usually use the Room of Requirements for it. You now, Scorp, we should make a deal. If neither of us is in a relationship at the evening of our graduation, we should sleep with each other. We are so close to each other and I actually think it wouldn't be awkward at all. I think it would be great and I would love to test the blindfolded sex."

Scorpius looked at her and tilted his head. "You are really serious about this? Because... your body is amazing and you are so adorable. And we already established in front of Al that we two will hook up at some point in time. Okay. We do it. It is a deal." He held out a hand and smiled at her as she took it.

"Deal!"

It might just be the firewhiskey talking but both Scorpius and Rose were very excited about the idea of sleeping with each other.


	16. Quidditch And How To Prepare For Exams

"I don't want to", Rose complained and pouted. "I really don't wanna do this anymore."

"Well, you have to. I stuck with you when you gave me advice on how I could become better with the animals and now you have to stuck with me during my lecture of spells."

"But Al… it is so boring! Why do I have to learn all of them? When the bloody hell will I ever need a spell to turn a door knob into a door handle?"

"You never know, my dearest cousin! But don't worry, Scorp will join us as soon as he is finished with Quidditch practice."

"But we have practice afterwards. Did you forget?"

"Oh damn, you're right!" Albus sighed and run his fingers through his hair. "Lucky you. It means we're done with practicing spells for our final exams in two days!"

"Well, I already have all my O.W.L.s in the classes I want to take. I just need to pass my N.E.W.T.s in seventh year. And I don't plan on succeeding in anything but Care Of Magical Creatures and Muggle Studies and D.A.D.A and maybe Transfiguration and Divination and Astrology and…"

"Yes, I get it, Rosie. You will be awesome in all of them. As always. But if you don't practice in spells and in Herbology, and especially if you don't improve in Potions, you will have worse N.E.W.T.s than Scorp. You really want that?"

"No… I want to be just as good as he is. What I lack in Potions, I make up for in Care of Magical Creatures and vice versa. But come on, we really need to hurry up to get changed and ready for practice."

"We still have plenty of time."

"But… no." Rose shook her head. "I wanna see Scorp practicing before we start! So I can talk a bit with him after his practice and we can arrange a time to meet in the evening. You're coming, too, right? Our first exam is tomorrow and after that we have exams nearly every day the next two weeks and then we are done with our sixth year! Merlin's beard, Albus! Can you believe we've been in Hogwarts for that long? It seems to me like we only started yesterday."

"I know what you mean. It seems like we are still the nervous eleven-year-olds who were so afraid of not living up to the expectations. You, as the first child of war-hero Ron Weasley and war-heroine Hermione Granger, you had nearly the same pressure as James had when he first started school. Though you did much better than him."

"Well, I am my mother's daughter, ain't I? Though I can be as troublesome as my dad."

"Oh, you proved that plenty of times. And I am glad I could join most of these adventures."

"We're talking as if it would be the end of everything!"

"Yeah, don't know why. Maybe we just got a bit nostalgic over everything. So, no sad feelings, my lovely cousin. Let's go and watch Scorp. And let's make silly faces!"

"Oh yes! Silly faces are the best! He will have such a hard time concentrating on everything when we're sitting down there, sticking out our tongs and rolling our eyes."

A few moments later, the pair of them sat on the top seats, watching their friend flying by. As soon as Scorpius noticed them, they began pulling faces. It was kind of hard to see them from way up in the air, but Scorpius knew by the way Rose was waving her hands what she was doing. He knew her inside out. Sometimes it took him by surprise how close they were. Especially for that short amount of time they knew each other properly. He knew by the way how she raised her eyebrows whether she was interested in a topic or completely bored. He knew by the way her eyes were shining if her day started the way she loved it. He knew all her favourites. Favourite book, favourite band, favourite movie, favourite spell, favourite animal, everything. He never asked about stuff like that. He just happened to know like Rose happed to know everything about him. They didn't even know when it has happened. It just had happened at some point in time.

As soon as Scorp's feet touched the ground, Rose sprinted down the stairs to hug him.

"You were quick", he smiled and hugged her back, "real quick! How come you are here? I thought you and Al had to learn a bit. He told me he wanted to ask you a few things about Magical Beasts."

"Yeah... he wanted to but I wanted to see you play! You are awesome and I'm a bit worried about our match on Saturday. It's gonna be so damn hard to play against you and your team. I've gotta score many many goals so we'll win even if you catch the Snitch!"

Scorpius laughed and hugged her again. "Sure. Try to score about twenty goals and you might be set. The team really is nice to me. It is a bit unusual for me. You know how mean they were."

"But they are gone and Zabini didn't do anything bad to you or me or any of your other friends. You will be fine. They appreciate your talent and they know you've saved their arses so many times. The team has won so many matches just because of you."

"Well, not that many... I have not played that many matches."

"But you will! Next year! So, do we meet after my practice?"

"Sure we do. I go and take a shower and study some Herbology with your lovely cousin Albus Severus' notes."

"Oh, come on, Scorpius Hyperion." Al made a grimace. "Not my full name. I just hate it... Albus Severus Potter. Named after two glorious headmasters. Yeah, thanks dad, for giving me such a ridiculous name. I know why and I know how well they meant it but really? If I could choose, I'd change my name. To something less expecting. If your damn name is Albus Severus, you do have to live up to some expectations. I'd change my name to something like Tom or Paul."

"Tom?" Scorpius raised an eyebrow. "As in Tom Riddle?"

"Oh... yeah, you are right. Well, then Paul."

"Paul Potter?" Rose had to giggle. "Sounds awesome! You're gonna be Paul Potter, James will be names Peter Potter and Lily changes her name to Patty Potter. And I'll be Wilma Weasley with my brother Wim Weasley. So Scorp has to be... hm. Mark Malfoy. And his baby-sister's name is going to be Mila Malfoy."

"Rose, I do hope your husband is very very strong and has fun arguing with you. Otherwise your children will be named even stranger than we are named." Scorp kissed her cheek and ruffled her hair a bit. "I will be gone. And you two have fun on the broom."

"We will! Have fun in the shower. All alone." Rose winked at him and blew him a kiss.

"I will have a lot of fun all by myself in the hot and steamy shower."

"Oh, you two are awful!" Albus sighed. "Really! Full of sexual innuendos. I so hope you shag before your graduation. Maybe all of this will stop then."

"You really think so? I think you do not know Rose and me too well. Anyway, we just meet at 8 pm in front of the kitchen. I know Rose will be hungry after Quidditch practice."

"Sounds great! And yes, I'll be freaking hungry afterwards! After my hot and steamy shower all by myself", grinned Rose.

"Have fun with that." Scorp grinned and hugged the two good-bye.

After practice and a bit of chatting with James and Lily, Albus, his girlfriend and Rose made their way towards the kitchen. Halfway, Albus decided that he and Izobel needed some time for themselves, so they set off to the Shack. It was alright for Rose and Scorpius. They both knew how stressful the time before the exams was and they both knew how little time Al had spent with Izobel lately. In addition, the two were perfectly happy spending the evening with each other and only each other.

"So... you wanna wish a room?"

"I would love to." Scorpius smiled at her and seconds later he opened the door. "You like it? I thought something relaxing and cuddling might be good. Seeing as we have our first exam tomorrow we really need some rest and peace and quiet-time."

"I like it. It is very... very us. Very Rose and Scorpius." She took his hand and dragged him into the room. "A bed is always good! I just hope we don't fall asleep. You know, we never fell asleep together. We never slept in the same bed. Weird, isn't it?"

"Not really. Why should we sleep in the same bed? It is nothing one usually does. Not with a pure platonic female friend, at least."

"I'd love to sleep in a bed with you! And cuddle and tease and hug you!"

"The tease-one is why I do not want it." Scorp smiled at her and took off his shoes. "Did Mum send you a letter? She told me she wanted to write you."

"She has indeed written me! But she just told me she'd like to meet up with you and me next time we go to Hogsmeade. Well, next time we're allowed to go there. So in three weeks time!" Rose beamed at him and took off her shoes as well before crawling into the huge bed.

Scorpius followed her quickly, snuggling into the duvet.

"Nice and cosy, am I right?"

"You are always right, Pumpkin Pie." He grinned and hugged her. "So, you want something to eat? Some tea?"

"Always." Rose thanked him and was overall quite happy and content with the situation. It was warm, she had food, she had Scorp and everything was back to normal. She just didn't like thinking about the upcoming exams. But being in bed with her best friend, drinking tea and chatting was definitely her favourite way of preparing for the tests.


	17. Sentimentality

The weekend they went to Hogsmeade was quite lovely. It was end of June, the sun was shining and a light summer breeze blew through Rose's auburn curls. She couldn't wait to see Astoria again. Pregnant women just made her feel so warm inside, so happy. They had this special glow surrounding them. Pregnant women were very beautiful. At least that's what Rose thought about the whole topic. Lily always said pregnant women looked like a balloon and she felt sorry for them because they had a sore back and huge feet and awful mood changes. Rose could only roll her eyes about her cousin's pure misunderstanding of pregnancy-magic.

"Rose, Scorpius, hello my dears." Astoria got up and hugged both; at least as much it was actually possible for her, being nine months pregnant. "Take a seat, please. Would you two like to drink something? I am sure Draco will get something for you. Will you, my love?"

"Of course." Draco smiled lovingly at his wife and kissed her forehead. "What can I get you kids?"

"Dad, we are not kids..."

"Certainly not. What can I get for you teenagers?" He grinned at his son. "Better this way?"

"Dad, you are embarrassing... But I would like to have lemonade, please."

"Oh yeah, me too!" Rose beamed at him and sat down next to Astoria. "It is so nice seeing you! I was so so exited!"

"Oh yes." Astoria chuckled. "Scorpius told me you are non-stop talking about how desperately you want to see little baby-girl Cassiopeia."

"I cannot wait until she's finally here! Scorp said we can visit you after the birth."

"Yes, it is all set with the headmaster. You two will get an owl as soon as I get into the hospital. But this is not why I wanted to talk to you. Ah, Draco, there you are." Astoria smiled at her husband and waited until he was sitting next to their son. "I wanted to talk to you two about something else. Rose, my dear, you know I adore you very much. You know you are partly the reason we are having a second child. You are Scorpius' best friend, you are as close as someone can possibly be. You really have changed him to the better, opened him up."

Rose didn't quite know why Astoria said all those things. She was a bit afraid of what would come next. In movies those speeches was usually given if your boyfriend was about to break up with you. But Astoria couldn't break up with her. Or could she? Of course she could. She could tell her that she didn't want Rose to have too much contact with her family because she changed everything and messed their life up, turned it upside-down.

"And because you are such an amazing person, especially for your age, Draco and I wanted to ask you if you would like to be Cassiopeia's godmother."

"I... her... what?" She looked at her, puzzled. Her gaze changed between Draco and Astoria; she didn't say a word. Draco smiled at her and lightly squeezed Rose' hand.

"You will be off age quite soon and we are aware of the fact that you probably will not be staying in England. And I assume you are a bit scared because you think you cannot be there for Cassiopeia properly. Am I right?"

Rose nodded carefully. How could she be someone's godmother if she wasn't physically there? No, that would not be a good decision.

"Well, we think our baby needs someone adventurous in her life. Someone who will teach her that women can be powerful and strong and childish and weird and that it is great to embrace everything you are and love. No matter how strange it might be for others. Astoria and I, we really think our daughter could not have a better sister-like godmother. And we also think, even if you are miles and miles away, as Cassiopeia's godmother you will always keep in touch with Scorpius. All of us will profit from that contact, from your friendship."

"Merlin, now I am tearing up." Rose wiped away a single tear rolling down her cheek. She didn't even know why she was so touched by all of this. Normally, she didn't start crying so quickly. Especially not because Draco Malfoy was talking to her. "I am really sorry I'm crying. Fuck, this never happened before! But I'd love to be her godmother, of course! It'd be an honour!"

"Great! Then it is set." Astoria smiled at her and hugged Rose, tucked a loose curl behind her ear. "You will see Cassiopeia is going to love you. And she will enjoy the time spent with you and her big brother together all the more."

"I so need to tell my parents!"

Astoria laughed and shook her head. "No need. They already know. We asked them first because we were not quite sure whether or not you would actually like our idea. But your mother was quite positive about it. She even gave us a self-knitted sweater with a huge 'C' on it."

"Oh, a Weasley-sweater! My grandma used to knit these. Mum picked up the habit after Granny Molly died."

"I know them." Draco frowned. "I think the twins sometimes wore them after Christmas. They were really ugly. But sometimes I was a bit jealous because their mum always put so much effort in it and it simply showed how much she loved her children."

Astoria wasn't sure who looked more uncomfortable about her husband's sudden declaration of jealousy towards the Weasleys. Rose looked really unsure about what to feel, whereas Scorpius' expression was a mix of embarrassment and awe. It was very rare for Draco to speak of his childhood, his time in Hogwarts or his relationship towards the Potters and Weasleys. Astoria appreciated it very much. She knew all about it but their son didn't. And sometimes it was quite important for a child to know his parents are only human and not some kind of semi-god you look up to as a little kid.

On their way home, Rose was still full of excitement about her new 'job' as Cassiopeia's godmother. She had so many plans, so many things she would love to show her once she was born and old enough. She wanted to show her all the great animals and beasts, Muggle and magical. The petite redhead babbled all the way up to the castle, all the way to the lake under the willow about how she was going to show Cassiopeia the beauty of nature and the true meaning of family and friendship. Yes, she had quite high ambitions for her relationship with the baby. Scorpius listened to her, smiling. It was so cute, she was so in love with the little baby although it wasn't even born yet. He loved watching her when she was so passionate about something. Her eyes sparkled like a Patronus, bright and full of hope, comfort. He always noticed the tiny golden spot in her eye, beaming like the sun itself. It was amazing; she was amazing. Scorpius couldn't think of any reasons why she didn't have a huge crowed of boys wooing her. Maybe because most of the boys were a bit afraid of James Potter; he was quite protective of his cousins and his little sister. Not only his female cousins. He also was very protective of Hugo and Louis as well. Especially Louis, because he knew how mean people could be if you were different from the others, if you were special. Being the son of Bill and Fleur Weasley definitely made him special. And James also knew boys could be assholes, no matter whether they dated girls or boys or both.

"Scorp? Did you even listen?"

"Hm? Oh, I am sorry, Rosie. I was kind of thinking about lots and lots of things. What were you saying?"

The pair of them had sat down underneath the willow, leaning against the stem of the huge tree. Rose had taken of her shoes, feeling the high grass beneath her feet and between her toes while she was lying in Scorpius' lap, stroking his hand slightly.

"I said that it was kinda weird of your Dad to sort of reveal that he had the feeling as if his mother didn't really love him."

"Well, my grandmother was cold when he was a child and a teenager. But she did love him and he knew it. It was not such a publicly shown love as it was with your grandma and her kids but Dad knows she loved and still loves him. Mum told me. My dad was never good with feelings."

"You are not good with them, either. You never talk about your feelings. But it's fine, because I see them. I see them in your eyes. And I see them in your smile. We two don't need words to talk about our feelings."

"You are very sentimental today, my love."

"I know. But it's alright from time to time. Does your dad ever talk about the War? Did he tell you anything about it before you went to Hogwarts?"

Scorp shrugged and sighted. "He did tell a few things. Mum told me most about it. About the facts of the War, the beliefs of each side. Dad told me that his family was grey. Not white, not black, but grey. I was eleven. You don't tell an eleven-year-old about such horrible things like a war. He told me to make friends and be myself, to enjoy school and to beat the clever Weasley girl I was so annoyed with." He smiled slightly and ran his fingers through the redhead's curls. "You remember the outbreak I had at the beginning of year five, when we talked about the War?"

"Sure I do. It's where it all started with the two of us. Where I first noticed you properly."

"The summer before, Dad told me all about his role in the War. How he got the Vanishing Cabinets repaired, how he hid them. He told me about Lord Voldemort, about who panicked he was, about the fear of losing his family. He knew if he would not obey, Lord Voldemort would most likely kill him and his parents. He told me how anxious he was, how scared. He had the assignment to kill Dumbledore, but he never wanted to. With his brain, yes. But with his heart? Never. He adored this man, adored how wise he was, how great he was with people. He knew the heart of his students, he could see behind the mask, Dad always told me. He was very grateful." Scorpius smiled and stroked her cheek. "I had all this new information. It was a bit too much to handle for me and when stupid Miss Cheng talked so badly about my father... I just... I do not now. I completely broke down."

"That's alright. You had to, at some point in time. Everyone does break down sometimes."

"You never do. You are strong."

"Because my family has my back. If someone insults me, a crowd of Weasleys and Potters is there to protect me. But sometimes even I want to scream because everything is just too much. We are so young. But when I think about what my parents have been through when they were my age... At sixteen, Mum has already been a cat from a failed Polyjuice Potion, was turned into stone by a Basilisk, faced a murderer, helped a supposed criminal to flee, broke into the Ministry of Magic and fought in a fight where a close friend died. My Dad has been knocked off a giant horse in a giant wizard chess game, his sister has been kidnapped, his wand accidentally erased the memory of his teacher, he had a huge fight with his best friend, his dad got hurt very badly and nearly died, he too fought in said fight, his brother got injured and nearly turned into a werewolf. All before they turned 17."

"Did they tell you all about this when you were young?"

Rose shook her head and cuddled into his lap, kissing the palm of his hand. "No. When we were young, they told us stories about the War. But like a fairytale. Suitable for kids. They told us stories about the brave hero who fought for the right and had to defeat monsters and the devil. They told us about whom the stories were the night before each of us headed to Hogwarts. We were prepared. But they told us all the cruel things when we were older. 13, 14 years old. Still, seeing your dad breaking down in tears when he tells you about how your mother got tortured... No 13 year old can handle it. I was so down, I was so angry and afraid. I had nightmares every night and slept in James' bed for ages after Mum showed me things that had happened to the three of them through the Pensive."

"Can you see Thestrals because of what you saw in your parents' memories?"

"No." Rose sat up and bit her lower lip. She took a deep breath before she continued talking very quietly. "I can see them because I saw my Grandma Molly die. We were with her the last minutes. Playing in the room she was sleeping in. I told you who is able to see them. No-one knew how bad it was with her. She kept it a secret so that she didn't have to bother anyone with her illness. I was 14 when she died. She coughed very loudly and we were a bit concerned so we stopped our game and went to look after her. She hugged us all very tightly and after hugging James, she just closed her eyes and never ever opened them again. It wasn't a dramatic dead. Nothing you might expect from Potters and Weasleys. But it was awful for all of us."

Scorpius nodded and hugged her. "She died in a room full of people she loved, full of people who loved her. She died in peace. It is something you can only wish for someone who fought so brave in the two most scaring wars. Oh no... please do not start crying again..." The blond drew his friend closer and stroked her back. "I hate seeing you cry. But if you have to, I am here for you to comfort you, okay?"

Rose nodded slightly and pressed her face onto the curve of his neck. "Sorry I'm making your shirt all wet..."

"It is alright. No problem at all."

"Why can you see them?"

"I saw some people die in Azkaban... went there for visits with my dad, to see my grandfather. I saw him die and a few others, too. It was gross. The screams and the pleas... but Thestrals really are beautiful."

"They are. Their beauty is just hidden. Only visible for those who suffered."

"Like true love and friendship?" Scorpius kissed her forehead and wiped away some tears.

"Just like true love and friendship."


	18. New Babies And New Decisions

"She is so beautiful. Just look at her."

Rose giggled and kissed Scorpius' cheek. "You look good with her. And yes, she is very beautiful. Just like her big brother. She was a bit late, wasn't she?"

"Yes, a few weeks. Nothing bad. At least we have holidays now, so I can spend every second with her."

"My love, I am her mother, I too need a bit of time with her."

"Yeah, sure, Mum. When you feed her. She will be with me the rest of the time."

"Okay, deal. Your dad and I will be glad if you get up every two hours in the night to bring her to me to feed her.

"Well… nah, okay. I have her the day, you have her the night. Rose, look at her! Look at her tiny fingers!"

Scorpius was completely amazed by his little sister. She was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen in his whole life. Even Rose was not as beautiful as Cassiopeia. And she understood. The redhead was fine with it. No-one could compete with one's baby-sister. Just like no-one could ever compete with Hugo. He would always be the best boy in Rose's life. Albus and James sadly only came third, right after Scorpius.

"Yes, I can see her tiny fingers!" Rose laughed and lightly touched Cassiopeia's head. "Oh! It's so soft! Her head is like… like clay. That's scary…"

Astoria smiled at her. "I know it is a bit weird. It freaked me out the first time I touched Scorpius. But you cannot break anything. Maybe, if you are lucky, you might even get to hold her."

"No way! She is my baby-sister. I will hold her and no-one else." Scorpius pouted but still gave Cassiopeia in Rose's arms.

"You are too kind", grinned Rose and kissed his cheek. "Hello baby. I'm Rose and I'm your godmother. I am here for the fun part of your life!"

While watching the pair with her little daughter, Astoria couldn't help but think that Rose and Scorpius looked weirdly perfect as a proper family. Maybe one day they would realize. Maybe one day they both would look at each other and simply _know_. She couldn't believe it was like this. Hermione and she have talked hours about how perfect their kids are for each other, how much they had helped each other grow. Hermione would be glad to have Scorpius as her son-in-law. And Astoria would simply love to have a daughter-in-law who was as spontaneous and generous and adventurous as Rose. But love had to happen, it could not be forced. And if Rose and Scorpius did not fall in love it was fine. It was fine as long as they were both happy, as long as they found someone who would love them the way Astoria loved Draco, the way Hermione loved Ron.

"Mum? We are heading off, okay? We promised Professor Longbottom to be back before dinner."

"Yes, sure sure. But do not even think about taking Cassiopeia with you."

Scorpius grinned and laid his baby-sister in her bed. "I do not want to have her over night; she will stay with you and Dad." He kissed his sister's forehead, hugged his mum.

Rose hugged Astoria, too, before she said good-bye to Cassiopeia.

Back in Hogwarts, Rose and Scorpius were already awaited by their friends.

"So how is she? Is she cute? Babies are always cute! Is she especially cute?"

"Hugo, calm down." Scorpius grinned, proud as could be. "She is perfect. Your sister took a few photos. If you want to, we can go into the Shack or the Room of Requirements after dinner and have a look at them."

"Oh, that would be great! Can't we skip dinner and go there right now?"

"But I am hungry!" James protested, "I really am!"

"So we could just go to the kitchen, grab something and then have a sort-of family dinner in the Room of Requirements", Louis suggested.

After a very heated discussion, whether or not it was acceptable that James could not sit with his friends and bitch about Janice Dicken and Taylor Lorrer dating (like, when did it happen? Taylor had been with James a year ago and now she was a lesbian? James was a bit taken aback by what he had done to turn her around. Louis got very furious about that comment.), but in the end they decided that James should just shut up and spend some quality time with his friends and family. At least as soon as he could. It was his last year in Hogwarts, his last year with his brother and sister, his cousins. Of course he would miss them. Hell, he would even miss Scorpius! Sure, at the beginning James thought quite badly about the blonde, but he began to see the person behind the name, the actual Scorpius, the best friend of Rose and Albus, the guy with the awesome hair. His style was still weird but James decided that he would teach Scorpius how to dress during summer holidays. It was sort of his duty as his best friend's brother. And he could not dress Albus anymore, Al was simply sick of going shopping with James. The girls were much easier. Except for Roxy, maybe. She was really hard to please. But that was fine, so was James.

"I think she looks just like your", Hugo smiled at Scorpius.

"You really do? Well, in this picture she is only a few hours old. I can hardly see a resemblance to anyone but all babies in the world." Lily rolled her eyes at her cousin and snatched a scone out of Scorpius' hand.

"Hey! Lily, my dear, she is the most beautiful and perfect girl on earth. She is my sister and if Hugo thinks she looks like me, I am a very proud big brother because that means I am kind of beautiful, too."

"You are very beautiful, my darling." Rose giggled and hugged Scorpius, kissed his cheek.

"You are very pretty yourself, Pumpkin Pie."

"Yeah, I know. I have lots of cousins who keep telling me." She beamed at him and hugged her best friend. "You know, I am so excited for this year to end so I can come to your house and spend so so so much time with my baby-goddaughter!"

"So I suppose I just invite Albus. Otherwise I will be all alone, because Cassiopeia is your one and only."

"Sounds about right." She laughed and hugged him again, snuggled into the comfortable pillows on the sofa.

They both knew Rose was going to spend an awful lot of time with Scorpius. Everyone knew. Everyone kept asking themselves why they weren't a couple. Everyone except for Rose and Scorpius. They knew why and they didn't even think about having a relationship. They just didn't love each other. Well, they did. But as friends, as soul mates. Not as lovers. In their heads they would never ever work. Though they loved being alone together, sharing all kinds of secrets. This night, too, the pair of them stayed behind in the Room of Requirements after everyone else headed to bed.

"You know, Beatrice asked me out few days ago."

"Oh did she? What did you say? She is kinda cute, don't you think? And the way she always looks at you... one could get jealous!"

Scorpius rolled his eyes and put his arms around the red-head. "I did say yes. She seems very nice and I thought it might be worth it."

"Have you ever talked to her?"

"Well... occasionally. I usually sit with you guys and she is at the Hufflepuff table. And since she is a year younger than us I do not share any classes with her. But I did talk to her a few times when I met her and Lily in the corridors."

"Yeah, right! I completely forgot she's a friend of Lily! So, when you marry her, do you want to have a joined last name? Scorpius Malfoy-Creevey. Nah, doesn't sound good. Beatrice Creevey-Malfoy. Sounds better, but not that good either. Beatrice Malfoy is fine, though. Her dad was quite young when she was born, wasn't he?"

"Rosie, I have no idea. You know I do not really care about the family history of anyone or about gossip or which one of your parents' friends had kids at what age."

"I know. But I do!" She snuggled into his arms and sighed. "So, you're gonna eat ice cream and spend the day at Hogsmeade?"

"I guess so, since we will be going out next weekend. Sorry I cannot spend the Hogsmeade day with you."

"Nah, it's perfectly fine. You just make sure to tell me everything about your date."

"I will." He smiled softly and kissed her head, drew Rose closer to his body to soak in her smell. It was lovely. Flowery and light, yet strong and not too girly at all. She was so full of contradictions. Her eyes themselves were sometimes different; they sometimes had a small but very strong golden spot in them. Her hair was amazing. It was red and fiery, fierce and yet so soft and warm. Scorpius was quite sure to never ever meet another person who was as special as his Rose. And still, he could not picture them as a couple, kissing each other, loving each other. Yet he could see them sleeping with each other, although he would have never thought he was the kind of guy to separate sex and love. He did it on New Year's Eve, but he has been very drunk that evening. Drunk and jealous. May that is why he slept with a random girl. Because Rose had Dimitri, because Rose had slept with Dimitri and Scorpius knew it.  
>Sighing, he looked down on Rose, seeing her sleeping in his arms. Her chest rising up and down softly, her curls falling in her face like the sunshine fell on earth. He could see her lips curing into a slight smile as he lightly ran his fingers up and down her arm. He saw her nose moving like a bunny's nose, they way she always did it unconsciously, even when she was awake. And in this moment he decided one thing: he had to have a girlfriend at the end of next year. Because Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy could not separate love and sex.<p> 


	19. Boys Can Have A Girls' Night, Too

"We have to face it: I am a total mess!"

Scorpius was pacing in the room, arms behind his back. While the blond boy was running circles in thePotters' house, Albus and James were sitting on Albus' bed, trying not to laugh out loud.

"You are not a mess, Scorpius", James tried to calm him down.

"I am! And even if I am not, I still am crazy. So damn crazy! My mind must have been replaced or something! What the hell is going on in there?"

"Okay, so if you start swearing, at least do it properly." The older Potter grinned and lay down in the bed, staring at the ceiling above him. "I should really put up a mirror. That would so improve my sex-life."

"Fuck, James! I am serious!"

"Nah, I am. At least partly."

"This joke is so old, dearest brother." Albus rolled his eyes. "Dad told us even Sirius himself said it every time as such a witty and clever comeback."

"It is a witty and clever comeback!"

"But Sirius is just your second name. That's why it isn't really funny. And because you constantly repeat it and we are all kind of sick hearing that joke."

"Well, just because you can't do a joke like..."

"Guys! I am dealing with a problem over here! Hello!"

James sighed and sat up again. "Okay, what is this huge, major problem you're dealing with?"

"I think I have a crush on your cousin."

"Which one?"

"James!" Albus nudged his brother and rolled his eyes. "Which one? Are you really asking that question? Rose, of course! Who else?"

"Well, it could be Dom. Or Hugo! Maybe Louis. Oh, wouldn't that be lovely?"

"James, you're a freaking idiot. Scorpius is not gay or bi. You are not gay or bi, are you?"

"Well, I have not been in love with a boy, so up until now I am not gay or have not discovered it yet. But that is not the point here! The point is: I need to have a girlfriend at the end of next year."

"So... clear this up for me: how did we get from wanting to fuck Rose to needing a girlfriend?"

"Oh James... how can you be so... he doesn't know, does he? I haven't told him, it's none of my business."

"I have not, no. I thought Rose might have. I did not know he does not know."

"What the hell are you talking about? What don't I know what you all know? Do I have to know?"

"In order to understand: yes, you should know." Scorpius ran his hand through his hair and sat down next to the Potter brothers.

"Then tell me! Bloody hell!"

"Well, Rose and me, we made a pact. When we are both single at the day of our graduation, we will sleep with each other, because we know it will happen at some point in time. We really like each other and we are attracted to each other. So it will happen. That is why I need a girlfriend at the end of the school year."

"What the..." James looked at him, stunned. Then he started to laugh. "That is amazing! So just sleep with her, what is the big deal?"

"I suppose our friend Scorpius is not a jerk who sleeps with a girl he has feelings for."

"Whoa, wait. So you're a jerk if you sleep with someone you like? Nice, Albus, very nice."

"That is not what I meant! I meant..."

"Let me just clear it up, okay? I do not want to sleep with Rose because I have a crush on her. And she does not have a crush on me. So if I sleep with her, I might want to be with her. And if I want to be with her and tell her, she will friend-zone me. Which would break my heart."

"Gosh, you're pathetic. Bad luck I'll be heading off to university quite soon. Otherwise I'd help you figure it out. Rose doesn't know you like her like that, does she?"

"No. I do not even know it properly. I just think I have a crush on her."

"So, she doesn't know you have a crush on her. Maybe you don't know that she has a crush on you. Maybe right now she is talking to her girlfriends about how much she really likes you and how badly she wants to avoid sleeping with you because she is so afraid you might friend-zone her."

"I do not think that is very likely. But thanks a lot for your advice, James." Scorpius shook his head and let himself fall on the bed. "Why is this so complicated?"

"It isn't. Really. We just figure out if you actually have a crush on her." Albus nudged his side and got a sheet of paper. "First of all, we write down what you like about her."

"And how's that gonna help poor Scorp to figure it out? I've got a better idea. Wait here, I'll be right back." James grinned at the boys and vanished out of the room. Before either of Scorpius and Albus could talk, James was back again, waving a magazine. "This will so help us! Got it from little Lils. I'm sure she won't miss it. Where is she?"

"I think she has a date or something." Albus shrugged his shoulders and tried to snatch the magazine out of James' hand.

"Hey, not so quick, dearest brother! She has a date? My baby-sister has a date? A proper date? When did that happen?"

"She is not even a virgin anymore. Sorry to break it to you, but that is how it is. Rose told me a while ago."

"Wait wait wait! My baby-sister had sex? When did _that_ happen? For Merlin's sake, Scorpius! I'm freaking out now! You shouldn't have told me!"

"Well, I just want to deal with my problem now. Not with your sister having a date."

"When did you turn all bitchy?"

"You taught me, James. You are a great master in being bitchy and thinking about one's own problems and solutions." Scorpius sighed. "Look, I really do not want to argue with you or turn all bitchy and girly, but I really need to solve this problem before Rose's birthday tomorrow."

"That's what I have the magazine for. _Is he really into you_ and _How to know if you love him_ can easily be used for your purpose."

"You sure that works? Okay, we give it a shot."

"Wait! Would anyone like cupcakes? Mum made some and I could get them. Oh and I can get us some lemonade."

"Okay, go ahead, Al. Scorp and I will wait patiently for you to return with fairy cupcakes and pink lemonade."

Scorpius just rolled his eyes. This was ridiculous. But it was kind of fun to have a boys' talk. And Hermione's cupcakes were always amazing! She was great at baking.

Still chewing, James turned to the quiz inside the magazine. "Okay, here we go. First question for you, Scorpius. _When you talk, does he_... well, she, 'cause it's Rose. _When you talk, does she look into your eyes?_ Oh, they have optional answers! A - _No, she doesn't seem to care, B – Yes, mostly, C – No, she just looks at me very seductively._"

"What? How am I supposed to know how Rose looks seductively? But I will go with B, since she looks me in the eyes. And sometimes she snaps out of the conversation, just starring into them blankly and then telling me how awesome they are."

"Okay, a tick for that. We can skip the second one, 'cause it is about talking on the phone and you two don't do that. The next one is great! _Does she ask you to do it with her? A – If I was to offer it, she'd be all for it, B – yes, several times, C – No. _Well, I know the answer to that one. She clearly asked you. This is easy! I like those muggle girl magazines. Understand why Lily and Rose are so fond of them."

"James... they are for teenage girls. You're not a teenage girl."

"Nah, but I like those quizzes. Wonder if they actually help someone making a decision. They seem to be pretty accurate. Anyway: next one! _You haven't seen each other in two days. How does she react? A- she surprises you and acts as if it were two years, B – you just make out, C – she acts as if she wants two more days apart._"

"Well, Rose cares if we have not seen each other in a while. Especially during the holidays. She does come to my house without me knowing it."

"And _how would you describe her? A – the best, B – needy, C – she cares, she just has her own way of showing it. _She's needy! Isn't she?"

"Just as much as I am. But Rose is the best, definitely."

"Don't you like someone with whom you make out all the time? Stupid question. I really only slept with girls I was attracted to, girls I liked. Not loved, but on which I had a crush. Don't know why I had such a bad reputation in school."

"Maybe because you'd a 'crush' on someone every month."

"That is so not true, Albus! I had a very serious relationship with Donna for six months!"

"Yeah, right. Forgot about her, sorry. But back to Scorp's problem. Next question?"

"_Why are you attracted to her? A – Because of all the things she told me, B – I don't know, C – because she is sweet, funny, smart and super cute."_

"Well... we are trying to figure out _if _I am attracted to her, not why! But since I have to choose... I will go with A, because our conversations were why I began to trust her and why I felt connected."

"That is so cute, it nearly gives me caries." James rolled his eyes and continued with the questions. "So... according to the test results: she is into you! Congratulations, Scorpius! Rose is into you."

"I am not quite sure if I can really trust this test." Albus shook his head. "But for the benefit of Scorpius: Yay, she's so into you!"

"Really, Albus, really? Come on, we all know this stupid test proves crab!"

"Stop swearing! At least, stop swearing like that. Scorp, I have to teach you how to swear properly. But first we need to do a second quiz to know if you are actually in love with my dearest cousin Rose Nymphadora Weasley."

"James, suck it up! I do not want to do another awful test which proves nothing but that people who believe in it are stupid and naive."

"But it was fun." James grinned and tossed away the magazines. "So, what's up next? I wanna watch a movie. Does Mum have more cupcakes? I want more cupcakes and some lemonade."

"James, sometimes you are like a little boy. But I do want to have cupcakes, too. So, Al, does your mum have more?"

"I am sure she has. Why don't you two choose a movie and I get us cupcakes and lemonade and popcorn."

When Albus came back, James and Scorpius had already closed the blinds and popped in a DVD.

"Seriously, guys? You chose _50 First Dates_?"

"Hey! It is an awesome movie! Adam Sandler is hilarious! And Scorp hasn't seen it yet! Did you bring popcorn?"

"Well yes I did." Albus climed into bed with the two of them, sharing his popcorn and the cupcakes. Sure, they couldn't help Scorpius properly. They couldn't figure out if he really had a crush on Rose, but maybe her birthday the next day would clear his mind. In the meantime, Scorpius enjoyed being with his male friends.


	20. Birthday Worries

"So, how come you're not even a tiny bit excited on your birthday?"

"Mum, it's only a birthday, isn't it? I had some of them before and will have some of them in the future. "

"Yes, but from now on you are off age. Not a minor anymore. Allowed to practice magic out of school, to apparate... you're a grown up now."

Rose sighed and hopped on the kitchen counter next to her birthday cake. She hadn't seen it yet, since it was under a magic spell which made it look like a cloth. Hermione had been in the middle of preparing the cake when her daughter had come into the kitchen, complaining about getting older every day.

"I know I am. So why should I be excited about it? Being a grown-up only means responsibilities. It means everyone expects you to have made a choice, to have a plan for the future, to have an aim in life, to do well in school and university and later on the job. It means you have to behave and everything."

"Does James behave like an adult? Do Fred, Dominique, Victoire, Ted and Roxy? Or George, your Dad, Harry, Luna. Do they behave like you just described it? Are they your versions of adults?"

"Certainly not."

"So what makes you think being an adult is about being stiff and strict? About behaving yourself?" Hermione smiled at her daughter gently and tucked a loose curl behind Rose's ear. "What is this really about, hm?"

"I don't know! And it annoys me that I don't know why I am not excited! I was so excited for all the others to come off age."

"Maybe you'll get in the mood during the day. Because we will prepare for the barbecue and everyone is coming! And you get to see Cassiopeia. Astoria said she'll bring her along instead of hiring a babysitter. She said it's her godmother's coming-off-age-party and it will be awesome, so Cassiopeia should get used to attend your parties in order to be prepared."

"Sounds great, Mum. Whole bunch of Weasleys and Potters and Malfoys, all living happily together."

"And what's your point, Rosie? Are you afraid someone might act up?"

"No. I am sure they'll all behave. Why shouldn't they? I mean, they all know each other. And I know that Scorp is so excited to see Ted. They are family and Ted is really fond of him."

"Is that the problem? Are you afraid Scorpius will spend more time with Ted than with you?"

"Not really. He wouldn't ditch me on my birthday."

"Then I don't really get why you are so upset about your birthday..."

"Just forget it. I don't get it either. I go riding, okay? Be back soon." Rose kissed her mother good-bye and left the kitchen. She really didn't know why she was in such a bad mood! It had nothing to do with Scorpius or her family or responsibilities. She was her mother's daughter, so everyone expected her to do great. But she was also her father's daughter, so no-one would be surprised if she kept being quirky and adventurous. But what if she couldn't live up to being fun and quirky? Then Astoria would have made a huge mistake and Cassiopeia wouldn't get the godmother she deserved. There were so many things to worry about. At least her friends were none of those. She could count on them. Well, most of them were her family. Wasn't that sad? Most of her friends were her family. At least her best friend wasn't. Just... sort of. Why were all her friends family? And all her family friends? She really needed something on her own. Doing the internship at Hogwarts would be sticking with the family. Doing the internship at Romania was sticking with the family. She wanted to be out of it. She wanted to achieve something on her own, without her family involved. Without anyone involved. Just recently had Astoria offered her to talk to someone about an internship. But Rose really wanted to get one on her own. Because she was herself, not because of her family name or through the help of others. It took her a while to realize but now that she knew, she was kind of relived. Once Rose was back from her ride, she rushed up the stairs to her room and started writing applications. By the time the first family members arrived, Rose had written seven applications to seven different places where she knew none of her relatives was involved with. It has been tough, because no-one in Hogwarts had taught her how to write an application for a Muggle institution. How was she supposed to mention her education without mentioning her education? She managed to find a boarding school in the Highlands and hack into their system to make her a student. Or at least to make her appear like one. Being off age definitely had its advantages. And a mum with a book of spells as well. A knock on the door suddenly brought her back into reality. She had been drifting off, day-dreaming about how awesome it would be to work at Sealife. Well, there weren't any special animals, no kappas, no mermaids. Fish, yes, for sure. Mini-sharks, maybe. But were they awesome? Were they magical, special, dangerous? Not really. But she liked Sealife. It was a nice way to see fish. Boring fish. But at least colourful fish.

"Come on in, please", Rose called out after quickly shutting down her laptop. She was quite sad it didn't work at Hogwarts. Those funny gifs were really great! Like the magical photos but with text! She loved them!

"Hey birthday girl!" Hugo smiled brightly at her and hugged her sister. "Fancy meeting you here! Why aren't you downstairs? The Potters will be there any minute!"

"The Potters? Well, I know. And the Weasleys will come, too. And the Scamanders. And the Malfoys. And all the huge family names."

"Rose, stop it. It's gonna be fun! Why are you so damn cranky?"

"I don't know!" She threw her hands up in frustration and started pacing the room. "I don't know what's wrong right now! It's my birthday and I am freaked out!"

"Real life begins." Hugo smiled at his big sister and sat down on Rose's flowery bed. "And that can be scary sometimes. You know, before I went to Hogwarts, I felt like you feel now. All cranky and I didn't know why. I was mad at everyone and I didn't want to be with all my cousins because I knew I would be compared to all of you. And I knew I could hardly live up to what you guys had already achieved. It turned out pretty awesome at the end. So whatever you're freaked out about, whatever you don't want... just let it come, okay? Don't try to plan everything, sis. We both know you are a lot like dad. But you clearly can plan ahead like mum, too. Don't do it, Rose. Don't let your mind interfere with your heart, Rosie."

"Why are you so smart?" Rose smiled at him and tackled Hugo onto the bed, hugged him tightly. "Se, I've already applied for lots of internships at Muggle institutions with animals. Zoos and Sealife and some sort of petting zoo."

"And what do you want to do?"

"I wanna work with awesome and dangerous animals!"

"Yeah, 'cause those rabbits and sheep are so so so dangerous!"

"Hey!" Rose giggled and poked her little brother. "They also have donkeys and goats! And you know that sheep freak me out! Their eyes are so scary and weird and I know they plan a murder in their tiny little brains. I prefer dragons. They are more predictable than sheep."

"Sure they are." He rolled his eyes and sat up." Come one, big sister, we have a birthday to celebrate, a party to look forward to and a cake to eat. It looks delicious and if I am down there before you, I'm gonna eat all of it and leave none for you." Hugo grinned and sprinted down the stairs, quickly followed by his sister.

"No, you won't eat my cake! It's my cake! 'Cause I'm the birthday girl!"

"Are you? I don't see that! You don't have a badge!"

"You're right." Rose suddenly stopped. "I don't have a badge. Hugo, I need one. Now!"

"Relax, Rosie. Don't go crazy. I know that Scorpius will give you one. He and Al and James bought it the other day and it is amazing. You'll love it."

"So I'll get my badge?"

"You sure will. And I'll get the cake." Hugo stuck out his tongue and made his way into the kitchen.

"You little... Don't touch my cake! It's mine!"

"Don't worry, honey, I won't let him", Hermione called from the kitchen, grinning. She knew her kids were close to each other, but she was still very proud that her son took it upon him to calm his sister down. On the other hand, Hugo has always been the sensitive one, whereas Rose managed to be oblivious to the obvious.

"Good. It's all mine. My precious!" Rose laughed and hugged her mum. "And my precious cake looks amazing!" The red-head looked proudly at her three-story-rainbow-coloured-with-unicorns-on-top- cake. "Thank you so much, Mum! This is amazing! I wanna eat it! Right now! What does it taste like?"

"The bottom one is strawberry, the middle one is lemon, the top one is chocolate. Sounds good?"

"Sounds like I really wanna have a piece of strawberry right now."

"I am sorry, darling; you need to wait until..."

Before Hermione could finish her sentence, a loud 'plop' was heard and Rose nearly screamed in excitement.

"Scorpius! Hello!" She threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly. "You're early! I'm glad you came!"

"I wouldn't miss my best girl's birthday party for anything in the world!" He cuddled her and kissed her forehead. "Mum and Dad and Cassi will be here soon. I just wanted to see you so desperately."

"As I can see, Romeo has found his Juliette."

"James! There you are!" Rose spun around and grinned at her cousin. "Where did you leave the rest of the gang?"

"Coming in a sec. I didn't wanna interrupt you lovebirds but I really need to wish you a happy birthday, Rosie!" James hugged and cuddled Rose.

One by one, the others arrived, wishing her a happy birthday, giving her presents and birthday cards. Rose was proudly showing off her glittering birthday badge and was finally enjoying her own party. And the best part didn't even start yet. She was also having a sleep-over with all her cousins and, of course, with Scorpius. Rose was really happy about having all her favourite people in the same place at the same time. And additionally, sharing a bed with Scorpius was always great! He was the best to sleep with. In the same bed, that was, next to him, not in any other way. He cuddled, he hugged her, hold her tight and made her feel safe. Rose knew that it might seem different than it actually was, as if she would be in love, as if she would seek for body contact, for Scorpius to feel and touch her. But this wasn't the case. Rose wanted to be with him, yes, but only as a friend. By now she was really getting sick of all of her cousins' comments about how perfect they were for each other. She was tired of listening to them, tired of defending her feelings, tired of explaining that boys and girls could, in fact, be friends and nothing more. Just friends. Just platonic friends. Little did she know that Scorpius was not feeling the same. He managed to hide his feelings, to suppress the urge to kiss Rose. Her lips were beautiful. How could he have missed her lips? He had always been so fascinated by her eyes that he had forgotten her lips. They were so full of laughter, so rosy and he was sure they were as soft as clouds and as sweet as maple syrup. He wanted to taste them. So badly. Just to try it out. If it felt nice, if it felt true and sincere. But he didn't. The whole night while all of them were talking, he didn't. He shot James and Al some glances and they understood. Scorpius was in love with his best friend and she was not supposed to know it. At least not on her birthday. But maybe, maybe it was just an illusion. A fantasy he had created around the first girl who had appreciated for who he was, for himself. Maybe it was all just an illusion.


	21. New Love Interests

"What the hell, Scorpius! Are you out of your mind?"

The blond boy just shrugged his shoulders and continued eating his scone.

"Tell me this is some kind of joke, please. You can't be serious! Fuck, Scorpius! I swear to Merlin, if this is just a game to you, I will kill you with my bare hands! I swear it. I am serious."

"I know you are. But just with your second name."

"Scorp! Shut up, okay? I am so mad at you!"

"Why?"

"Because you're playing games with her. She's really into you, Merlin knows why!"

"Why thank you, James Potter. You are really flattering."

"You know what I mean! I thought you were in love with Rose! Hell, Scorp! Leave her alone and try to get my cousin."

"Funny, but it turned out that my affection for Rose was not as strong as I thought. "

"You talk about this as if it would be a piece of cake, fucking easy-peasy, but it's not! It's a serious issue!"

"Look, James." Scorpius sighed and ran a hand through his hair. During the summer holidays, Scorp had spent an awful lot of time with James. Less with Albus, because Al was quite busy with his girlfriend. And since Rose had travelled to France and Romania, Scorpius had had to pass a lot of free-time. James had given him a make-over, taught him a few things about this and that. He really was a nice guy, but Scorpius had the bad feeling that spending too much time with James would probably affect him negatively. James was in university now and they'd only see each other once or twice a month, which was perfectly fine with Scorpius. Besides, he didn't need to be offended just because he had changed his mind, just because his heart turned out to be incorrect.

"What?" James hissed, "Don't give me an elaborate speech about how you forgot Rose. Because I know you couldn't. Because I know you love her!"

"I do not love her. James, listen. I do not mean to hurt anyone, okay? That is why I talked to you and Albus and Rose. I do not want to hurt you lot. I love you and you are my family. But I do not love Rose, I am not in love with her. I thought I was, yes. See, at the beginning of this year she got herself a new boyfriend. I am not even remotely jealous. I do not feel this tingling anymore which I felt this summer. I guess it was just a harmless crush. But now... but now it is real. I know it is."

"You're doing my sister!"

"I am not doing her, James. We have hardly had any dates, because you and Albus keep blowing them up. I will not hurt Lily, I promise. James, I really like her. I think it could work out with the two of us."

"You don't have anything in common! Lily hates kids and you love them! There is not one thing you and Lils both want. But Rose and you, gosh, you have so much in common, you want the same things!"

"No, we do not want the same things. Rose wants to travel, to work abroad, to experience the world, to live life to the fullest. I want to settle down, become a successful healer and found a family. That is not what Rose wants. And even if it was, I do not want to spend my life with her. Well, I do. I want to have her as my friend for life. She is amazing and I need to have her, to keep her in my life. And I want to date Lily. She is an amazing girl. She makes me laugh, makes me feel good about myself. Her smile is contagious. So is her laugh and she has the most awesome eyes I have ever seen." Most of it was true. But the eyes... no-one's eyes could compete with Rose's eyes. They were... Scorpius had no words for it. He could spend hours looking into her eyes, getting lost in the brown swirls, in the small blue spot which sometimes appeared, sometimes disappeared. He didn't know when or how or why it happened but it did and it always amazed Scorpius. Rose in general was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. Lily couldn't compete with her. Lily couldn't live up to Rose, not at all. Scorpius didn't want to sound mean. He liked Lily. A lot. He really wanted to give it a shot. Lily was so into him, it was flattering. But that wasn't why he wanted to be with her. He truly believed they had a lot in common. "James, I want to date your sister and she wants to date me. But if you object, I will not make another move on her, I promise. If you do not want me and Lily to date, we will not date. Lily and me talked this over and agreed on it. If you and Albus are completely against it, it is fine. You are her big brother, James. And she will listen to everything you say, because she looks up to you and she loves you. And I, too, look up to you. We would never ever do anything against your will."

James clenched his teeth and simply looked at Scorpius. He looked at his subtle smile, into his grey-blue eyes. James was quite proud of himself. He did a great job turning Scorpius from a boy who just accompanied the Weasleys and Potters into a young, handsome man who could get every girl he ever wanted but didn't make those moves because he was way too nice and sophisticated. James had turned Scorpius into a better version of himself. Not a more handsome one, obviously. No-one could be more handsome than James Sirius Potter.

"Oh, fuck it, Scorp! Go and try it. But don't ever give me any details, okay? Don't ever tell me how cute she is, don't ever tell me how much you fancy her. She is my little sister and I want her to stay that way. I don't want her to become a woman, really. And I don't want you to tell me when you made her one."

"Trust me, I will not tell you if I have sex with her. That would be a bit disgusting, to be honest."

"Glad to hear. So, you are really over Rose?"

"I guess I never loved her. Guess it was all just an illusion. Something my mind made up. It is fine. She is happy with Hakim. He is a good guy and I trust him. Sure, I need to get to know him better but he is way nicer than Dimitri ever was. Which really is not that hard. But anyway, I am happy for her and I want her to enjoy this relationship. I know we will not spend as much time together as we used to, but it is fine. Maybe us four could even go on a date, once Lily and I are a proper couple. That would be lovely."

"Man, I guess I'll have to get used to the idea of having you as my brother-in-law. Well, at least you'll make a decent amount of money to support your family."

Scorpius had to laugh. "Yeah, I guess you are right. I will make a hell lot of money. But do not expect me to marry your sister. I am 16, nearly 17. Who knows where I will end up after graduation. No-one ever thought you would end in university. We all guessed that you would become a Quidditch player, like your mum. We never even imagined you would want to major in learning disabilities and Squib magic."

"Well, it's bloody interesting. And I think that it is so important to included Squibs into our magic society. We are oh-so-open and tolerant, but Squibs are still a taboo."

A small smirk crept upon Scropius' lips. "You Weasleys and Potters are all so passionate about what you are doing and what you want to do for a living. It is great. I hope to be so passionate one day."

"You already are. Just about different stuff. About your sister, about Rose. Books and potions and plants. Rose is freaking passionate about animals and beasts and family. Everyone is passionate about something. And I am quite passionate about myself and Quidditch. And how awesome I am. And Squibs. And how awesome I am. How good-looking. How nice. How tolerant."

Scorpius laughed out loud and shook his head. "You are unbelievable, James! Really. So, when are the others coming?"

"They'll be here in about half an hour, I guess. At least Albus told me so. He wanted to get a birthday present for his girlfriend and meet up with her before meeting us and Rose and Hakim. She said she'll bring sweets."

"I like sweets."

"I know you do" Scorpius heard a voice behind him, "And I bought all of your favourites, sweetheart." Rose kissed her best friend's cheek and slumped down unto the chair next to him, her boyfriend sitting down next to her, kissing her on the lips. Scorpius was again surprised to find himself perfectly fine with it. No jealousy, no hard feelings against Hakim, no problem with some guy slightly stroking up and down Rose's thigh. Maybe his feelings have really just been an illusion, a fantasy, a hope. But Lily was real and she was there and interested and interesting and pretty and intelligent and fun to be with. She was no fantasy. She was sitting right next to him, beaming at him, hanging on his lips, listening carefully to everything he said. Scorpius loved it. She made him feel incredible. Never in his life would he have imagined that Lily could make him feel this way. He would love to kiss her. But they weren't there yet. This wasn't even a date. Lily had been with Hugo and Louis, Rose had been with Karim, Albus had been with his girlfriend and now they all just met up to have a drink and then go separate ways again. Lily would be going with Rose, because they were going to meet up with Roxy and Dominique, whereas Scorpius would be heading back to Hogwarts with the rest. Maybe stop by at George's to buy some new gadgets.

"So... you and Scorp then, he?" Rose asked her cousin, beaming from ear to ear.

"You're not mad at me, are you? You know I have a thing for him since like forever."

"Yes, I know. That's why I am so glad he came around to finally notice how great of a young woman you are, Lils. You deserve him. I am not so sure if he deserves you, but we'll find out."

"He clearly deserves me. I promise you. He is amazing and so lovely. He made sure that you and James and Al approve of this thing we have before making another move. But since you all do, I suppose he'll ask me for our first proper date in public quite soon."

"As long as I'll be your first child's godmother, I am perfectly fine with everything."

"You do know I really don't wanna have kids. That is your thing, not mine. I am not that keen on tiny human beings who do nothing but cost you money, stink, ruin your body, make a mess and ruin your career. Don't try to convince me, really."

Rose smiled, quite sure that Lily would come around sooner or later. She was part of a Weasley-Potter-family. Kids were inevitable with those. In addition, a future with Scorp would not work without children. Everyone knew that.

"But Lils, just remember that Scorp is quite a sensitive boy, alright? Don't mess with his heart. Don't mess with his mind. Well, mess a bit with it. Messing with a guys mind is what makes them interested in you. No, not with Scorp. Be nice to him."

"I will, don't worry. I wouldn't want you as my enemy. I mean, if Scorpius and I ever break up, I know you will be on his side, no matter what. Whereas everyone else will be on mine."

Rose continued to smile but actually, she wasn't sure about that. If they broke up – which Rose was certain they would rather soon after Scorpius' graduation -, she would be there for Scorp. Al and James probably, too. Hugo and Louis were questionable but mostly to be sided with Scorp since they adored the hell out of him. Rose was sure that Louis had a crush on Scorpius. Just a small one, like one adores a random stranger passing by on the streets. Anyway, she would always stand by Scorpius. He was everything to her. So why did it seem so strange to imaging him kissing Lily? Probably because she was her younger cousin. Yes, that would it be, Rose was certain. It felt weird because she was family.


	22. Confusion Clearing

"So, how was your date, Loverboy?" Rose smiled as she plopped down on the green meadow next to Scorpius. He really was good as creating an amazing and natural Room of Requirement. The meadow was full of flowers, smelling like summer. Why they weren't outside in the real nature? Well, since it was the beginning of December, snow had begun to fall. The grounds of Hogwarts weren't yet covered in the powdery white, but everything glistened with an icy white crust, especially in the early morning hours and now, at the beginning of the night. Scorpius even managed to sort of recreate the ceiling of the Great Hall. Well, he had created a night-with-stars-ceiling, similar to the real sky outside.

"Please, do not call me Loverboy", he scrunched, "And I also guess you already know how it was. I bet you have already talked to Lils, have you?"

"Actually, I haven't. I've been with Hakim all day long. It was really nice. I wish I could use the Prefects' bathroom." She sighed pathetically."

"I feel you", the blond laughed, "too bad you are not a Prefect, am I right? Can Albus get you in? He's the Prefect, so it should be possible for him."

"I haven't asked him. Not yet! But it's a great idea. Might be a nice Christmas gift for my boyfriend, if you know what I mean."

"Pumpkin Pie, I do not really want to talk about your sex life. And I do not want to talk to you about my sex life either."

Rose pouted and leaned against him. "Okay, I get that. To be honest, I told Lily the same today. That I don't want to hear anything about the sex life of you two. She is family. You are family. I don't wanna hear about family sex life. Though James constantly talks about his."

"Yeah, but with James it is sort of charming. That is just him. Al does not talk about it, but we all know when he is off with his girlfriend. He had a James-moment a few days ago, telling me how awesome the Prefects' bathroom would be for him and his girlfriend and some alone-time."

"Ewww, really Scorp, I don't wanna have those pictures in my mind." She closed her eyes and slightly stroke Scorpius' arm. "But I forgive you. Because you are my favourite person in the room."

"Well, that is very nice of you, Pumpkin Pie. That at least means you like me more than you like yourself" Scorpius grinned at her.

"Well, I certainly do. From time to time." She giggled and snuggled closer to Scorpius. He smelled incredible! Was it a new shampoo he used? She would know that. He would have told her. They always told each other everything. She sometimes wondered if that would continue after graduation. After they've parted.

"What is going on in your mind, beneath those funny crazy lovely curls of yours?"

"I am thinking about how we will handle being apart from each other."

"That will not happen until July. And even then we will be together. With your internship at Hogwarts I will be able to see you nearly every day. Or at least every second day, depending on my training schedule."

"It won't be the same. We both know that. But actually, by now I am totally looking forward to that internship. Working with Hagrid will be awesome! And he promised me to take me into the forest to talk to the Centaurs! Centaurs, Scorp! They are by far the most intelligent beings on the whole planet! Can you believe I'll be allowed to talk to them? Can you believe that? Oh... but what if they don't wanna talk to me? What if I'm too stupid for them? Too naive?"

"Rose, you are a very intelligent young woman. You are a high spirit. I am sure the Centaurs will love exactly that about you. From what I gathered, they want their species, their culture to be respected. And I know that is what you do. You respect everyone. That is what I love about you. You treat every being the same, may it be a Muggle, a wizard, a witch, a puffskein, a unicorn or a mermaid. You respect every single one of them. The centaurs will see that and they will in return respect you. Sometimes you are naive, yes. But so what? You keep your innocence. That is a very brave thing to do."

"God, I love you so much." She smiled at him, brightly, kissing his cheek. "You always find the right words."

Scorpius did not want this to happen, but it did. His heart began to flutter when Rose said the l-word. He knew how it was meant but it still happened. Scorpius' stomach clenched, he felt like he was getting sick. As if he would need to throw up. Why was this happening to him? He wasn't in love with Rose. Not anymore, never was. So why did a rush of heat followed by a sudden shiver run through his whole body? It didn't make any sense. He was with Lily. He really liked her. He had a crush on her. He would spend Christmas at her house. This could not be happening. This should not be happening at all.

"Well, I try my best to cheer you up, Pumpkin Pie. That is what I am here for, that is why I am your friend."

"The best I've ever had and will ever have." The red-head beamed at him, cuddling her friend before letting herself fall into the grass. "So, you and Lily are a proper couple now? She still isn't sure about that, to be honest. She doesn't know where you stand."

"Are you asking me to talk to Lily about our relationship? Are you suggesting taking it a step further?"

Rose was a bit confused about Scorpius' sudden change of mood. He went from being open and lovely to closed up and nearly aggressive. She didn't even know why.

"Scorp, I don't want to interfere with your relationship, okay? Look..." She sat up again, looking him straight in his eyes. "I really love you and I really love Lily. I want all of you to be happy. And right now, Lils isn't happy. She is confused and scared, because Lily is really into you, she really wants to be with you. Like a real couple. Officially, for the public to recognize. But if you do not feel the same about her, it is fine. You listen, Scorp?" Rose smiled at him softly, stroking his cheek slightly. "It is okay if you don't feel the same about her."

"Don't fucking talk to me like I'm a child, Rose. I am not, okay? I'm not a fucking child and you don't need to tell me how to feel or behave, understand?"

Again, Rose was taken aback by Scorpius' mood. He was swearing. There was clearly something wrong with him and Rose was so insecure about talking again.

"Scorp, please. I just want to see you happy. If you are not happy in your relationship of whatever it is with Lily, just break it off. You will hurt her, yes. But if you stay with her in this wabbly thing you have, you will make yourself really unhappy and you are far too important to be unhappy. It was worth a shot, wasn't it?"

"I guess so." Scorp sighed and fell into the grass, dragging Rose softly with him. "But I do not know. I do not know if I want to be with her. I do not know if I want to give up yet. But if I take it a step further, it is a commitment. And I am not sure if I m willing to commit to her and the Potters." He ran a hand through his hair, cuddled closer to Rose. At least the unnerving feeling in his heart and his stomach has vanished. He felt a bit safer now, secure even. He was with Rose and he was calm. Everything was perfectly fine again.

"Then don't. Talk to Lily, explain it to her. She will understand. Okay, maybe she will hate you for a while. But it will pass and I am with you. Forever. I think we need to go deeper, to find out why you feel so unsure about everything when a few months earlier you were quite confident about Lily and your feelings."

"Can we go out, please? I would like to get some air while we work on examining my inner self." He smiled a crooked smile and got up, holding out his hand to help Rose up. "Mylady, would you like to follow me into the snow?"

"Why, yes, Mylord. As long as we are veeeery careful, because we are past our curfew."

"Are you afraid of breaking the rules?"

"Bloody hell, never afraid of that, only looking forward to it!" She laughed out loud and grabbed her coat, following Scorpius out of the room, after he had made sure that she was wearing her hat. Rose found it always very nice to look at Scorpius in the snow. She never figured out why he was so amazed by it. It was just snow and he had seen it plenty of times. But still, there was amazement in his eyes every time Scorpius set foot on snowy ground or looked out of the window into the landscape, protected by its white coat.

"So, tell me. Tell me what the matter is and I'll try to help you." Rose smile at him and took his hand in hers, softly dragging him towards the lake. It was one of his favourite spots, which Rose never understood, since he was afraid of dark waters. But still, he liked it nevertheless. He just wouldn't go swimming there.

"You see, a few months ago I was quite sure that I was in love with someone. And sometimes, I still think I am. Sometimes when she talks, I feel like I felt before."

"Who is she?"

Scorpius sighed. He didn't want to lie to her but he also didn't want to tell Rose that he had been in love with her. "You know Amelia Cruise? The cute blonde one in Ravenclaw? She is on the Quidditch team. I have had a thing for her. At least I think so. I am still not sure if it was really love. She got herself a boyfriend and I was not jealous. Not a bit. So I guess I was not in love after all. But sometimes, when I see her or when I talk to her, my whole body tingles and I feel a rush of heat running through my veins. Anyway, when Lily came to me and asked me out at the beginning of this year, I was not sure about it. I was still confused concerning my feelings for Amelia. I thought I was in love and ten minutes later I was sure it was just a mild crush, if even. But Lily is nice and sweet and good-looking. And she asked me out and I just hoped that I would get over my crush, that she could help me with it, because I really am attracted to her."

"But sometimes you are still not sure if you wanna be in a relationship?"

"We have hardly any in common. The sex was nice, though. But it is not worth it. What if I only want to be with her for the sake of having a relationship? Or something like that. It is not fair to her, is it?"

"It really isn't. You should just tell her the truth. She'll understand and she won't be mad at you, I promise. Right now, she is just very confused about where you two stand. If you clear it, she'll be glad."

"Are you sure? I really do not want to hurt her..."

"You won't." Rose smiled at him. "You know what? I really need to help you taking your mind off of Lily and the whole drama. We should make snow angles instead. They're awesome! And I know you love them! And we could visit George and Fred. I'm sure they're still at the shop, it's only ten pm. They need to clean and everything, so we could pay them a visit, get some new gadgets, have a chat, maybe drink a butterbeer or two. What do you think?"

"Sounds like a plan." Scorpius smiled softly and hugged her. "You really are the best friend I could wish for, Pumpkin Pie."

"I can be awesome sometimes, I know", she giggled, hugging back tightly. "But just to clear it up: you dated Lily to get over a girl and because she is pretty and made a move?"

"Yes. Exactly. I know, it is a bit of a dick move."

"Nah, it's alright. You're allowed to be selfish once in a while. You never are and getting over someone is a bloody good reason to be."


	23. Stick To The Plan?

The more-or-less-breakup was easier than Scorpius would have expected. He had talked to Lily and told her how he felt. Not that he thought he was in love with Rose. Or might have been. He still spent Christmas Eve at the Potters' house to see Al and James before the Potters and Weasleys came to his house in the morning. Scorpius was so glad his baby-sister had a huge first Christmas. She deserved it because she was awesome. Also, he loved seeing Rose interact with the toddler. He was glad that Hugo was really into photography and therefore took a lot of photos of Rose and Cassiopeia and Rose and Scorpius. The blonde boy made sure to later on get some pictures for his bedroom and his wallet. He also desperately needed them for the time he'd be out of school and Rose would be off to experience the world.

The rest of the school year went by uneventfully. That was until shortly before the Ball. But by then, Scorpius was certain that he wasn't in love with Rose. He had no romantic feelings towards her whatsoever.

Scorpius woke up, a bit confused. "What the...?"

"Shush, Cupcake. It's me."

"Scorpius! Throw out your stupid girlfriend!" groaned one of his friends, "it's freaking 3 in the morning!" Others joined him in complaining. They wanted to sleep, for Merlin's sake! They had their final Astronomy exam coming up the next day and Scorpius could understand why they were so angry. "How the hell did she even come in here? This is our freaking house, not hers!"

"Scorp told me the password. I'm sorry, guys."

"Shit, Weasley, are you crying?" Finally someone turned on the lights, only to see a very devastated Rose standing next to Scorpius' bed, clutching her pillow very tightly. "God, Weasley! You come into our house in the middle of the night and you cry? Scorpius, just promise us to make it quick or to use a freaking Muffliato Charm."

"I promise." Scorpius softly dragged Rose into his bed and casted the charm around them so the others could go back to sleep. After the lights had turned off, he hugged Rose and kissed her forehead. "What happened, Pumpkin Pie?"

"Hakim broke up", she sobbed, "and I have no idea, why. He just did it. He just broke up with me! No reason, nothing."

"Oh Rosie, I am so sorry..." He hugged her tighter and stroked her back. "You will be fine. He and will have to give you an answer. He has to. And if I make him. I really do not care. I need him to give you an answer. He owes you, okay?"

"That is what Al said", Rose sniffed and buried her head on his chest, "that's even what Hugo said! And he is way too young to be awake at that time in the night. I need to tell him tomorrow."

"No need to worry about that, I will talk to your brother about that. You tell me what exactly happened, okay? And how you told Al and Hugo about it, understand?"

She nodded and for a while just sobbed into his shirt, trying to calm herself down. "You see, I was with Hakim tonight. We had a great evening, chatting and laughing and yes, we were sleeping with each other. It was getting very late but I didn't care because I don't have an exam tomorrow and he doesn't have an exam so with just had fun and lived and had butterbeers and sex and I was so in love. You know? I was so happy to be with him, it felt so save..."

"I know what you mean, Rosie, I know. What happened next?"

"We cuddled for a while and got dressed to head back to the Castle. We were in the Shack, because Al wanted to use the Room of Requirement to study and I suppose Hugo was helping him because he is a genius in Astronomy and Albus not that much. So Hugo helped him study and..."

"Rose, what did Hakim do after you got dressed?"

"He told me..." Her voice broke down and she started to cry again. "He told me that he can't be with me anymore and that he has to break up with me, that he doesn't wanna be with me anymore... I got so mad at him, Scorp. So so mad..."

"Did you hurt him, Rose?"

"Imightvebrokenhisnose", she mumbled under tears.

"You did what? Rose, the hell?! You broke his nose? What where you... alright, okay." Scorpius took a deep breath to calm him down. "Okay. It is okay. He hurt you, you hurt him. Revenge. I can accept that. What did you do then?"

"I went. I ran away, through the whole bloody castle! And I met Al and my baby brother and I was so mad and I told them and I don't know... I don't know. Hugo stormed out and Al followed and they left me. Scorp, why does everyone I love leave me? Why did they leave?" Rose pressed firmer against her best friend's body, crying silent tears into his shirt.

"I would bet my – and pardon me for that word – my arse that they were going after him. To hurt him like he hurt you. They are your family and they want nothing but to protect the ones they love. We all love you very much, Rosie. No-one is ever going to leave you. We all might be separated at some point in time but family always sticks together. I will always be there for you. So will Lily and Al and the Scamander Twins and Lucy and James and Ted and Vicky and Hugo and Cassiopeia and Roxy and Fred and everyone else. Okay?"

Rose sniffed a bit but nodded. "Okay. That's a fair deal."

"I know it is. We should take a walk. So you can relax and calm down a bit. Let's go outside, come on." Scorpius got up without making much noise, handing Rose his green sweater because in the middle of the night it was actually a bit cold outside.

Through a secret passway, the pair of them went outside. Rose inhaled the fresh and chilly air deeply, trying to forget what had happened before.

"So, Scorp. You know what it means, don't you?"

"What what means?"

"Me being single. It means our deal is on. Ten days until the ball and I think neither of us has any intentions in getting into a relationship now. Do we really wanna stick to the plan? Aren't you scared it's gonna ruin our friendship?"

"I am awfully scared, Pumpkin Pie. And I am not sure if I want to do it. I think we should keep it in the back of our heads and see what the evening will bring. If we do it because of our pact it can only go wrong. Maybe it just happens. Who are we to tell?"

Rose smiled softly at him and took his hand in hers, intertwining their fingers. "Okay. Sounds like a plan." She was glad about it. The red-head was far too heartbroken to just sleep with a random guy or even her best friend.. She wasn't meant for fixing herself with sex. And she was very unsure about what the sex might do to their friendship. Especially in sight of graduation, going away, growing up. It might complicate everything. Rose was also not sure if she was even attracted to Scopius.

"Would you rather walk a while or sit down?" Scorpius wanted to know after a few minutes of silently walking through the clear night.

"Sit in the grass, please. You look really tired, Cupcake. And I am not in the mood for talking anyways, but the air is nice. Why don't you just make yourself comfortable and I join you?"

"Are you sure?" Scorpius looked at her, questioningly, but after a small nod, he found a place to rest.

While her best friend lay down in the grass fairly near to Hagrid's hut and closed his eyes, Rose took a good look at him. His hair was gorgeous. Very shiny and bright. Of course it was. He was part-Veela. It had to be amazing. Those couldn't help but notice his nice body. Quidditch realms had done him good. His shoulders were wide, he had a six pack - not too toned -, his arms looked better than arms were allowed to look. She adored his jawline. Very elegant and manly, yet so soft. Rose wanted to place soft kisses along it. Hang on. What did she just think? No. She did not want to kiss Scorpius. He was her best friend and she shouldn't look at him like that. She mustn't. After reassuring herself that it was wrong to stare at the attractive Slytherin, she lay down next to him into the grass.

"Why can't it always be easy like this?"

"Because life is not easy, Rosie. Life is hard and complicated and so much fun if you share it with the right people. Tell me, what does your dress for the Ball look like? You have not told me. And I would love to have you as my date, as we are both single now. What do you say? Are you going to be my Graduation Ball date, Rose Weasley?"

"Why, I would love to, Scorpius Malfoy." She placed a soft peck on his cheek. "And I'm still not gonna tell you how it looks like. It's a surprise! But I'm sure you'll love it. I actually bought it with you in mind rather than my ex-boyfriend. I don't know. I know that's not so great, like a betrayal. But hey, he dumped me. I can buy dresses without thinking about him. That's perfectly fine."

Scorpius chuckled and drew her closer. "Yes, it is perfectly fine."


	24. The Graduation Ball

When the day of the actual Ball came, Rose was damn nervous. Yes, she had passed all her exams – passed them as well as she could have. She was not the best in their year, a bit better than Scorpius overall and as good as Albus. She was very proud of herself and her achievements. But she was still nervous. Simply because she didn't know. She didn't know what life held for her. She didn't even know what the next weeks held for her. Or this particular evening. She didn't know if, in the end, she would sleep with Scorpius. She didn't even know if she wanted it to happen! Rose had thought a great deal about it during the last few days, now that it was an actual possibility. He was so good-looking, they were best friends, she trusted him. Plus, he would be wearing a suit. Rose was very keen on men in suits. And Scorpius was definitely a man. He had grown so much, inside and outside. His face was beautiful. As hard as she thought, she could not name a man who had such a pretty, delicate and yet manly face as her best friend. He looked like a picture, as if he was the personification of a painter's perfect man. And his eyes! How could anybody have such amazing eyes? She was always amazed at how well she could read them, at how full of emotions they were. Scorpius' eyes were like the mind of a writer. Okay, maybe she was exaggerating it a bit. But that what made Rose so nervous. For her, he was perfect in every way. And yes, she came to the conclusion that she was attracted to him. But what if he wasn't attracted to her? None of his former girlfriends shared any of her trades. On the other hand, none of her former boyfriends looked anything like Scorpius.

"You're ready, Rose?" called her friend, Albus' girlfriend, towards the bathroom.

"I guess I am. How do I look?" Rose stepped out of the bathroom. "Well, you do look amazing, I have to say."

"So do you, Rose. It's stunning! I'm sure Scorpius will love it."

"Of course he will." She giggled and looked one last time into the mirror before she and her friend headed towards the portrait hole in the common room. They agreed to meet up with the others downstairs, so Al's girlfriend could have a big moment walking down the stairs. Rose loved to watch her cousin's face lit up as soon as he spotted his love. To be honest, she envied them a bit. They loved each other so much and they were only 17 years old. Lucky bastards. Of course, she got lots of compliments, too, but no-one looked at her like Al looked at his girlfriend.

A few stories downstairs, Scorpius got ready for his Ball. If he only knew how nervous Rose was. He thought that for her everything was just a piece of cake. Not a big deal. She went with her best friend, what could possibly go wrong? Did she even care about their Firewhiskey plan? Yes, they've talked about it. But what if it was actually going to happen? Scorpius was on the edge of freaking out a little. But he was desperate to see Rose in the dress she had promised. And when they met at the entrance of the Great Hall, the blond Slytherin was stunned. The Hall looked amazing. Green, yellow, red and blue everywhere. Candles were flying around and high above their heads the stars were glistering and beaming. But the most beautiful thing, the one that had caught his eye before everything and everyone else, was of course Rose. She didn't promise too much. Her dress was the exact green of the house of Slytherin and went all the way down to the floor. Of course, as it was Rose, it couldn't have just one colour. Scorpius had expected a rainbow-coloured dress, but a Slytherin-green, poofy skirt mixed with a Gryffindor-gold top looked amazing on her. It complimented her skin, her eyes and her hair.

"You should wear green more often, Pumpkin Pie. It looks... I cannot even find words for how amazing you look like."

"Thank you, Scorp." Rose blushed a little and placed a soft kiss on his cheek. "You don't look bad yourself, not at all! You should rethink your career choice and choose something where you can wear suits all the time instead. Your tie is Slytherin-coloured!"

"Of course it is. House pride must be shown. And I match your dress. As if I had known it."

"You look so shocked. Is it so hard to believe that I look good?"

"You always look good, Pumpkin Pie. Even in pyjama pants and your hair tied up, you still look magical. Today you look especially splendid." Scorpius smiled at her. He had never seen her that way before. Well, he had seen her dolled up for New Year's Eve and similar occasions, but today was different. Today, the tingling sensation in his guts was back, the burning in his chest, the dizziness in his mind. This cannot be happening, Scorpius told himself, this should not be happening. Not again. "I am waiting for my compliments, Rosie" he grinned at her.

"Okay, let me try and tell you how amazing you look. I can't. There are no words for it. You look so different, so grown-up and manly and so damn hot. Your hair is awesome!" Ross beamed at him and Scorpius beamed back.

The pair of them didn't even notice that all of their friends were already inside the Great Hall, while they were still outside, telling each other how attractive they were.  
>"Shall we go inside, Mylady?" Scorpius held out his and for Rose to take it.<p>

She followed him, smiling from one ear to another. He did look gorgeous, no doubt. Ross couldn't really put her finger on what was so great about him today, but something was different. Somehow he looked more mature, more attractive, more like the kind of guy she could fall in love with. And Rose really didn't like those thoughts. She wanted to fall in love because of someone's character, not because of his looks. And she really did not want to fall in love with her best friend. She was not falling in love with him, she told herself, it would be a very stupid thing to do. But you can't help your feelings, can you?

"Would you like to drink something, Mylady?"

"Why, yes, certainly, Mylord" giggled Rose, letting to of the blond's hand. She joined a few friends while Scorpius was getting drinks for them.

After a while of drinking - non-alcoholic punch, of course -,chatting and gossiping about how everyone else looked, Rose and Scorpius decided to separate from the group for dancing.  
>It wasn't at all awkward, with Scorpius' hand on Rose's back and Rose's hand on Scorpius' waist. It felt real, true and good. Comforting, even. They were very comfortable with each other. So much, Rose could hardly believe they've known each other for no longer than two and a half years. Properly, that is. For her, their relationship seemed to much much closer, much more intimate than any relationship with any of her cousins. Maybe that was the reason. Because he wasn't family. Maybe because she was attracted to him.<p>

"Scorp? Al and I have some bottles of Firewhiskey in the kitchen, perfectly safe for only us to find. Shall we go down and get some?"

"You remember what happened the last time we both drank that stuff?"

"I certainly do. I don't regret it and we said that we will wait and see what happens."

"Okay. Then we can get some. After another dance?"

"Yes please. Dancing with you is easy and I love it! You don't step on my toes, thank you."

Scorpius laughed and kissed her cheek. "And you hardly ever step on mine."

"You're so mean! But I still love you, Cupcake, don't worry." As Rose uttered the l-word, she felt a small tingle in her stomach. Maybe it was just her imagination. Little did she know that Scorpius felt the same, thought or rather wished the same.

After a few more dances, they made their way into the kitchen and then towards the lake, a bottle of Firewhiskey as well as friends with them.

"So, Louis" began Albus, "Hugo said you'd like to have the Room of Requirements for this night?"

"Yeah... Well..." He flushed bright red and nodded slightly. "I've told my boyfriend about it and he was quite eager to see it and well... Use it. If you know what I mean."

"We do know" laughed Hugo and hugged his cousin, "and we approve of it."

"That means we go into the Shack?" Albus asked his girlfriend, who nodded in approval.  
>"And me? Where can I go with my boyfriend?" Lucy wanted to know. "Oh, I know. I can ask a friend of mine, he's a Prefect and I am sure he can get us into their bathrooms."<p>

"You know, you seem to think you are the only ones to have a partner" Scorpius chuckled, "but there are a lot more people on Hogwarts who might want to have a good night."

"The Shack and the Room of Requirements are quasi family business" Rose grinned, "we have the right to claim them for ourselves! And the others are clever enough to use classrooms or their dorms. Are you afraid there's nothing left for you and me?"

"We still don't know if there needs something to be left for us."

"So you two think about breaking the pact? You can't do that!"

"Of course we can, Hugo. If I don't want do sleep with Scorpius, it's fine. If he doesn't want to sleep with me, it's fine, too. It might be too awkward and everything."

"But I want you two to be together so much! You would make an amazing couple."

Scorpius just shook his head and sighed. "Seems to me that everyone has this opinion. Everyone but us."

"That's not true. There were times when even you thought you'd be in love with Rose."

"He... What?" Rose looked at he slightly tipsy Albus, completely dazzled. "He did think that?"

"Thanks a lot, Albus. We agreed that I would be the one to tell her. Rose, it is half as bad. I do not think it anymore. The story I told you about Amelie was really about you. That is why I was so confused the whole summer before this year. But turned out that I was just exaggerating everything. So do not worry, everything is perfectly fine."

"Oh, okay. Glad you told me." Rose smiled at him. "And you could've told me earlier. Maybe it would have been easier for you if I had known it. I think we're very close, no wonder you thought you'd have a crush on me. The whole world expects us to have one on each other!"

Scorpius smiled softly. "I am glad you understand." He kissed her cheek and took a sip of the brown liquid.

Throughout the evening they went back and forth between dancing in the Great Hall and having something to drink at the lake. One after another vanished, going to bed alone or with their partner. At the end, only Rose and Scorpius were left, giggling uncontrollably about bubbles in the lake's surface. It wasn't even funny but by now they were more than tipsy.

Suddenly, Scorpius stood up, looking what Rose considered to be mischievously. Without hesitation, he scooped Rose up bridal style, kicking his shoes off his feet.

"We are going for a swim, Mylady."

"No! Scorp, no no no!"

But it was already to late. Only a blink after her complained, Rose found herself under water, the poofy skirt of her dress clutching to her legs, her curls clinging on her face. Spluttering, she dived towards the surface, catching her breath. At first she was a bit cross with Scorpius. But as soon as she saw his grin, his wet hair and the suit so tight on his body, she couldn't do anything but laugh.

"That was fun! But! I want to get undressed. My dress needs to dry and I think I lost a shoe. You're with me?"

"Already ahead of you." Scorpius sprinted out of the water, quickly getting rid of everything but his boxers. After Rose undressed, she followed her best friend back into the lake, hopping onto his back.

"How come you went into the lake? I mean... You're afraid of bottomless waters!"

"But with you on my side I feel safe."

"Thank you!" Rose smiled proudly and placed a soft kiss on his neck. Another one on his cheek quickly followed.

What came next, both of them couldn't have guessed, even if they had tried very hard. Rose slowly slid down Scorpius' back, taking his hand to lead him deeper into the lake, until she was covered in water up to her shoulders. Without thinking, Rose kissed Scorpius. Fully on the lips. At first, Scorpius was hesitant, but it vanished soon enough and he was kissing her feverishly.

The pair of them didn't even think. They just went with the moment until a few hours later, Rose and Scorpius were both laying in the grass under a widow, panting heavily, trying to catch their breath again.

It was dead silent, apart from a few early birds giving sound every now and then. Neither of them spoke, not even when Scorpius lay his jacket over Rose's naked figure to shield her from the fresh night's breeze.

"I think I have a crush on you" muttered Rose after some minutes of silence.

More silence followed before Scorpius answered: "That makes it very awkward. I think I have a crush on you, too. Makes it even more awkward, does it not?"

"So what do we do then?"

"Nothing. I am off to start my healer's training, you are off to your internship and then off to see the world."

"So we do nothing. Pretend it never happened." Rose nodded slightly. "Fine with me."

"No. Do not pretend nothin ever happened. But the crush we might feel... I bet it is just the heat of the night, the moment, the closeness, the intimacy. Nothing more but also nothing less."

"We do nothing at all about it."


	25. Of Wings And Fur

Weeks passed. Rose hadn't talked to Scorpius, Scorpius hadn't talked to Rose. They both hated it. But somehow neither took the first step. Scorpius lived with James in London now and it was an awful lot of fun. Albus was in Edinburgh and was doing a six-month-internship in something to do with goblins. He was really keen on working with them and possibly on working for Gringotts at some point in time. Anyway, Scorpius was with James and he really enjoyed himself. But he missed Rose a lot. James usually teased him about what had happened between Rose and him. He knew. All her cousins knew. It was fine. They had understood their decision to let it cool down, to be separated from each other for a while in order to figure everything out. It still hurt like hell. Scorpius wasn't sure if he wanted to meet her. They've exchanged a few letters over the last four weeks. So he knew that Rose would shortly be off to Iran. Another internship. Bill had helped her getting it and Rose didn't mind. She had taken off her prejudices of not letting her family or her name help her but working with Persian beasts was way too tempting. Scorpius hadn't yet decided whether or not to meet her. On her last evening with Hagrid, he decided to talk to her. He had to. Otherwise he wouldn't forgive himself.

"Scorpius..." Rose stood still as she saw his figure outside of the Hut, waiting for her to come home from the forest. She wasn't sure what to feel. Was she still crushing on him? Was he still crushing on her? Did he want to talk it out? Was she mad at him? Was he mad at her? It only took her a split second to decide. Soon she flung her arms around him and hugged him tightly. "You arse! I missed you!"

"I missed you too, Pumpkin Pie. And I am so sorry for not coming earlier."

"Well, I could've visited you, too."

"Nah, James is always in the flat and the keeps teasing me about you. You would not want to experience that, trust me."

Rose chuckled and kissed his cheek. "I guess we need to talk, don't we." She let go of him and sat down on a step before the Hut.

"Yes, we need to." Scorpius sat down next to her and took her hand in his. "Being separate was a stupid decision. We should never have done that."

"I know. But a month earlier it seemed to be the only reasonable thing to do."

"Screw reasons." Scorpius kissed her temple. "Just so you know: I do not have a crush on you anymore."

"And I don't have a crush on you. So everything is fine, isn't it?"

"Apart from the fact that we have lost four weeks. And you will go to Iran rather soon."

"Not for another two weeks." Rose smiled at him. "I am sure you can stay the night. If you want to, that is."

"I'd love to. But... In Hagrid's Hut?"

"No." Rose laughed. "That'd be weird. Hey! You got rid of contractions!"

"Yeah, of some... Living with James just makes my language really strange. I've started to curse a bit, too!"

"How shocking!" giggled Rose and hugged him again. "Oh and I sleep in the Head Girl's room. Really comfy. If you don't mind sleeping in one bed with me, you can stay there, too."

"I do not mind at all." He smiled at her softly. How he had missed her. Everything about her. From the top of her head, her freaky auburn curls, her amazing hazel eyes with love and light and life in them, her cute little nose, her laugh, her touch. Just everything.

"You can't imagine how many letters Hugo wrote me to tell me that I'm a fool to let you walk away. My baby brother clearly wants you to be his brother-in-law."

"We get along quite well. And he is so much of a romantic person. So so much. If I ever need dating tips, Hugo would be he one to turn to. Anyway, shall we head to Hogsmeade, eat something and then get back to your room? Why don't you go home today, if today is your last day?"

"I'll get my certificate or whatever tomorrow and I have to check on the baby Hippogriff."

Scorpius eyes became wider, he looked at her in amazement. "I have to see it, Rose. I have to! Hippogriffs are amazing, I love them."

She chuckled and got up. "Okay, follow me. She hasn't got a name yet, so if you can think of anything nice, we might name her that way." Rose held out her hand and helped Scorpius up, leading the way to the tiny baby. "This is her." Rose smiled at her best friend, picked up the Hippogriff and handed it carefully over to Scorpius.

"Oh wow... She is really tiny! I already love her. Her wings have the exact same colour of your eyes."

"Have they? I didn't notice..."

"I think we should call her Hazel. Sounds good?"

"Sounds amazing." Rose watched smiling as Scorpius stroke the small animal, cuddling it softly.

The furry and feathery cub seemed to be very comfortable with Scorpius, as it began nibbling on his fingers.

"The beak isn't very sharp yet, is it?"

"Not really. Like babies have their baby teeth, Hippogriffs have very soft beaks at first. They develop and harden the older they get."

"Faszinating. Oh. I think she fell asleep." Scorpius smiled and placed the animal back in its pen. "So this is what you have been doing the last four weeks?"

"Nah, she's only 10 days old. I've taken care of her mother but she can't nurture the hatchling, so I did it. And I've talked to Centaurs, which was amazing! They were really kind and honest and it is so interesting to listen to their stories! I've taken care of all sorts of beasts. Small and fluffy and dangerous and tiny and complicated ones. I loved it! Did your training start already?"

"Not yet, no. In two weeks time. But I've already moved in with James, about two weeks ago. I don't know why. I like being home but I felt the need for a change."

"I understand. Shall we go and grab a bite in Hogsmeade?"

They really had fun that evening. Chatting about the good old times, gossiping about their old classmates and who was off to do what and where. Hardly anyone went into Muggle jobs, which Rose considered to be a pity. She would work at a zoo or a tiger reservoir; it was a possibility but still not very likely, as magical creatures were far too interesting. After hours and hours of laughing, they went back to Hogwarts. Since Scorpius didn't mind sleeping in one bed with Rose, she got a second duvet and cuddled up next to him.

"Do you think it was a mistake? Sleeping with each other, I mean."

Scorpius shook his head. "Nah, not really. At least for me it was quite an exciting experience and I did like it a lot. But we should have dealt with it differently. Starting by not admitting crushes which weren't proper crushes. And spending time apart from each other was stupid, too."

"I think so, too. The confessions were what made it awkward. I'm glad you enjoyed it. I certainly did." She smiled at him and placed a small peck on his cheek. "So we're back to normal?"

"Yes, back to normal. Finally." Scorpius sighed happily. "So, tell me about Iran and what you'll do there?"

"Well, I'll be with some guy who teaches me how to deal with Manticores."

"Manticores? They are the ones with the body of a lion and the tail of a scorpion, am I right?"

"You sure are." Rose smiled at him. "I see, you've listened to me rating about different beasts. Did you know that Hagrid actually managed to get one breed with a Fire crab to create Blast-Ended Skrewts?"

"What are those? Have we seen them in class at some point in time?"

"No, we haven't. Have I never told you about them? Harry had to face one in the Triwizard Tournament. Hagrid never discovered what they eat, so they mostly ate themselves or starved to death. He had had several hundreds of them but no not a single one is left. As far as I am concerned."

"As I know Hagrid, he might have one somewhere, keep it alive somehow. Wouldn't that be an interesting thing for you? Researching those creatures? Discovering everything about them?"

"Yeah, sort of... but they are small and look like wabbly lobsters and somehow I am really not into them. I prefer Manticores and Hippogriffs and Unicorns and Thestrals and I am not so keen on Dragons."

"So like everything with fur or feathers?"

"Hm. I've never thought about it that way. You think so?"

"We'll go through some beasts and find out. Maybe that will help you to get a clearer idea of your future. Hand me a sheet of paper, turn on the light and give me a quill. We are going to help you now."

Rose laughed and did what the commanded. She cuddled up next to Scorpius and placed a soft kiss on his cheek. "Okay, let's start."

"Unicorns, Manticores and Hippogriffs have something in common: all have fur and wings. Thestrals only have wings, no fur. So, let's look for winged beasts. Dragons you said."

"Interesting, but widely researched and Charlie is working with them. So no. An internship would be great, a longer one than the one I had over holidays once. But dragons are not my cup of tea."

"Okay, cross that off the list. Too popular. What about a Phoenix?"

"Too small. Not dangerous enough. Fascinating, beautiful, mysterious, elegant, yes. I would love to have one but not to work with them."

"Then I guess Doxies are off the list as well?"

"They are. As are fairies overall. So boring. I like the bigger creatures."

"Something like Chimaeras?"

"I really do like them, yes. But they don't have wings. Doesn't fit into my profile!"

"But they have fur and they are a hybrid creature. The same as Hippogriffs and Maticores. And, what I've noticed: Unicorns and Thestrals resemble horses. You have one at home which you love very much. You are also very keen on Centaurs. Hybrid creatures which are partly horse. How do you feel towards Hippocampi?"

Rose looked at Scorpius in awe. "How did you get so smart? I never drew all those conclusions, I never thought about the facts in those ways."

"It is late at night and when I am tired my brain works in mysterious ways" he chuckled and kissed the top of her head "so, Hippocampi?"

"I am very fascinated by them. They are usually found in Mediterranean waters but some Scottish Merpeople have tamed a few specimens and domesticated them. I think we know way too little about those beasts. But I am not sure if I would like to work with Merpeople. Not keen on them."

"So what about Kelpies?"

"They are demons and that fascinates me. They have no true form but are mostly seen as horses with bulrush manes. You can tame them very easily by using a Placement Charm."

"Everything which is horse-like appeals to you. You should do something with that, don't you think? I know you and I know you need danger but you also need stability. And something which reminds you of your beloved pet is the best stability you can get. Manticores do not look like horses, but they have the body of a goat. And somehow a goat is like a horse, isn't it?"

"Scorpius Malfoy. I think you have just helped me with my future. How can I ever thank you? I need to research all those beasts! I need to travel around, to see if their behaviour is similar, to see if they eat the same, sleep the same. I have to tame some of them, I have to talk to Centaurs to find out about their culture and what they think about Unicorns and Hippogriffs and Hippocampi. I can combine everything I love. Oh Scorp, thank you so so much!" Rose hugged him tightly and kissed his forehead. "How can I ever thank you for that?"

"Oh well, just promise me to stay in touch with me and sent me lots of postcards from around the world. Maybe you even manage to visit me once or twice a year."

"You know what you should do, Cupcake?"

"Sleep, because it is very late and we have to get up early to feed Hazel?"

"Yes, that too, but something else. You should come with me. Either specialize in the healing of beasts or specialize in the healing of the wounds and injuries they cause. That way we can be together forever."

Scorpius smiled softly and blew out the candle. "Well, that is an appealing thought, I have to say. Travelling with you has its perks. But you know I like a quiet life and I am content with a high position in St. Mungo's. But I know I have to do an internship at some point. If you still want me then, I'd gladly come with you to get more experience. A different experience from all my other colleagues. That way I can stick out of the mass, be special. And be with you."

"That would be a dream come true" Rose mumbled sleepily "to work with you for a while... amazing. To see you every day and know I just have to feel distressed for you to take care of me... I would love that, Scorp. I would love that."

He smile softly and ran his fingers carefully through her tangled curls. "I suppose I will work with you then. As long as you promise me to fall asleep now."

"Promise if you promise me to never letting me allow myself to break up the communication between us."

"How can you fall half asleep and still utter such complicated sentences?"

"'M my mother's daughter. Promise?"

"I promise. I will take care of you and our friendship."


	26. Plot Twists And Family Planning

It was shortly after Cassiopeia's third birthday. Rose hadn't been there for the actual day, because she had been in Azerbaijan, at a Unicorn Reservoir. But that internship was over now. She had written Scorpius tons of letters, met him a few times in between two internships. She had written him about the Unicorns, about the Thestrals in the Russian Taiga and how amazing it was to work with them, to get to know those precious underrated creatures. She had written him about the Manticores in Iran, of course, about how the Hippogriffs lived all over Italy and how she had lived with them. Rose had written him about the Chimaeras in Egypt, how much fun it had been to work with some old colleagues of her uncle Bill. She had written him every single bit, just as Scorpius had written her every single bit of his Healer training. Right now, the newly graduated waited for his best friend at the airport. Rose quite liked Muggle transport and she wasn't keen on Portal Keys. Not after what had happened to her as a kid, after James had managed to accidentally hex her toy car.

"There you are! I've been waiting for ages and ages!" she beamed at Scorpius as she pulled him in for a hug.

"You just came out of the luggage area, Pumpkin Pie." He grinned and hugged her tight.

"Rosie!" A very blond, very small girl smiled up to Rose, tugging lightly on her skirt, "aren't you cold in a skirts?"

"I just came from a very very hot country, Cassie, so yes, I am a wee bit cold here in good old England." The red-head picked up Scorp's sister and cuddled her. "So, Sweetie, are you ready for our adventure? I told you, I would celebrate with you for your birthday. Sorry I couldn't be there on the actual day."

"Is ok", Cassiopeia smiled, "Scorry said you were wif Unicorns! Are they magical?"

"They are very magical, dearie. So beautiful and elegant. I took pictures I can show you later on." She kissed her forehead and placed her softly back on the ground, taking her hand.

Scorpius, gentleman as he was, took Rose's suitcase and led them to a nearby magical café from where they could travel back to the Weasleys. Rose just quickly dropped off her stuff, was welcomed by her parents and was gone a few moments later.

"Were we go?" Cassiopeia looked up at her two companions, her big blue eyes full of questions and awe. "Scorry, you so pretty!"

Scorpius laughed and kissed his sister. "Thank you. You are pretty, too, Sweetheart."

Cassiopeia giggled and took Rose's hand as well as Scorpius' hand. She was really glad that both of her siblings – she regarded Rose as sort of her sister although she knew better – were throwing her a small birthday party. Or a surprise, she wasn't quite sure about that. But she knew that is was going to be awesome. Being with Scorpius and Rose was always awesome. She wanted them to get married, so that they could have a baby she, Cassiopeia herself, could take care of. She wanted to be a big sister! But right now, she was quite content with the ice cream she was allowed to eat.

She brabbled all the way, all the day the three of them spent together in the amusement park.

"Can I go on a round-about? Pwetty pwease?" Cassiopeia looked at the pair of them with those big eyes no-one could resist.

"Of course you can, Princess. Do you want me and Scorp to go with you?"

"Oh yes!" She smiled very brightly as Scorpius sat her on the back of a horse, climbing on the one next to hers as Rose sat down behind Cassiopeia, making sure she wouldn't fall off.

Scorpius smiled at Rose and she smiled back. Merlin, how he had missed her smile. How he had missed everything about her. The smell of her hair, the colour of it. The twinkle in her eyes, the small pull on the left corner of her lips while she is fighting to hold back a smirk. How could he even be apart from her for that long?

As he looked at her, Rose smiled even brighter. His eyes were a book to her, she could read every single feeling. It scared her, sometimes. Especially after not seeing him for the last few months. One expects a person to change, but somehow, whatever had happened, Rose was still able to see right into Scorpius' soul. She loved it. It wasn't because of her ability, no. It was because of what it meant. It meant that she and Scorpius would be together until the end of time, one way or another. They would be friends, come what may. They would be family, connected through Cassiopeia, through James and Albus. Even through their parents. If she was ever in the situation to rely on someone to safe her from death, she would rely on Scorpius.

Since she was so deep into her thoughts, Rose didn't even notice that the roundabout stopped. Cassiopeia began to tuck on her jacket.

"Rosie, pwease another turn!"

"Okay, one more" Rose said softly, turning away from Scorpius to focus her attention on the little girl, "but then we need to move on and do other adventurous things like going on a water ride."

As Cassiopeia was still very young, Rose and Scorpius had a hard time shielding everyone from seeing the magic she accidentally produced. It wasn't something bad. Smaller charms and hexes, like directing her fishing rod to the duckies with the most points or re-filling her cotton candy, changing its colour frequently. It was still a lot of fun for all of them.

After dropping Cassiopeia off at home, Rose and Scorpius read her a bed-time story and tucked her in.

"So, did you enjoy your first day back in England, Pumpkin Pie?" Scorpius smiled as he handed her a glass of water and some chocolate brownies.

"Thank you. Yes, I really did enjoy it. I love spending time with my goddaughter. She's amazing. Though she already plans how to name our first child. My cousins and my brother aren't on this road anymore, they don't want us to marry again. I guess they finally understood."

"I hope so. Cassie is very romantic, so she loves to talk about babies and marriages and kisses and everything. Last week, she had a phase were she wanted her plushies to marry and kiss and have babies. So she basically wants everyone and everything around her to marry."

Rose giggled. "Fine with me. Speaking of the matter, how's your girlfriend doing?"

"We broke up. Few days ago. Not so big of a deal, really. I wasn't in love with her, so it did not really hurt. I hesitated a few weeks."

"Oh, I remember. You wrote to me. That you are not sure, that you didn't feel that comfortable in the relationship."

"I wasn't. She never took me for who I am, always wanted me to change and I was so sick of it. Stressful time, with her clinging on me, with my final exams coming up... Anyway, I broke up, passed my exams with the best marks possible, became a Healer and I will be starting to work at St. Mungo's next month."

"That is all very awesome." She smiled at him and kissed his cheek. "I am so bloody happy that for the next three months, I'll be down in Scotland, learning about Hippocampi. I am quite eager to get to know the species before I study them in Greece afterwards."

"Have you found out what species you want to really work with?"

"Nah, not really. I mean, all of them are equally amazing, for so many reasons. And I love travelling around the world! I want to go to Eastern Asia, to work with Qilins."

"What the hell are Qilins? I have never ever heard of them."

"I have heard of them a few months ago. Didn't I write you about that? Well, obviously not. They are from China, originally. Look like... well, they have the head of a dragon and the body of a tiger. But no fur. They have scales instead. That is the common Qilin. A rarer form is the one of a single horn on its head, a multicoloured back, hooves of a horse, tail of an ox and the body of a deer."

"That sounds really strange... and there are no wings! But still, very interesting. So you want to work with them for a while?"

"I think so. But I also kind of want to settle down finally. Not really settle down as in find a proper place to live, but settle down as in find a beast I want to study, I want to dedicate my life to."

"Go with your heart. That would be the best thing but I don't need to tell you, do I?"

"No. Following my heart is what my parents taught me. What my aunts and uncles and grandparents taught me. But I am never sure if I can really and truly follow my heart."

"Why not? What keeps you from doing everything you want? You've been travelling around the world for the last three years. What could you possibly dream of that is harder than letting behind all your loved ones?"

"Trying to reconcile my Hermione-part with my Ronald-part." She smiled sadly.

"Oh Rosie." Scorpius sighed and pulled her closer, kissing the top of her head. "Look, here we are, sitting on my flat's roof, having a small picnic. Is that what you want for the rest of your life? Quietness, boringness?"

"No, I don't like it quiet and boring. But I want this for my life. This! I want to be with the ones I love every evening. Maybe not every evening, but most of the evenings. I want to live somewhere in the UK, so that I can apparate home every evening and sit with my husband as I sit with you. I want this for my life. I want to feel safe and loved and comfortable. How can I if I wander around in the freaking world? But I want to travel. I don't want to feel trapped in a relationship or in a place. I want to live dangerous at work and safe at home. Just like Bill and Dad and Harry. I'm really fucked up, am I right?"

"Nah, you are just a Weasley. They love danger and you love family. That is who you are and you should embrace every last bit of your soul. Even if at the moment you are a bit conflicted."

"But how did you know what you wanted?"

"I suppose because I wasn't that conflicted. Your parents... you have the smart one and the loyal one. Both are very brave. So are you. But from what I've gathered, your parents both are not that adventurous. From what you have told me and what your dad told me, your dad is loyal and stuck with Harry because he is his best friend. Your mum stayed with him, because he was like her brother and because she knew that he needed help on his quest. That is why you are fighting. Because the adventure comes from the thoughts, not from the heart. But with a part of you, it comes from heart. With the Bill-part and the Charlie-part in you, it comes from the heart. You are fighting head against heart, but the heart is with your parents as well. The heart of love, of family versus the heart of adventure and danger. You know, I think you should talk to Bill. He managed to combine both, didn't he?"

"You are way too smart for your own good, Cupcake." Rose smiled and kissed his cheek "and I love you so much for always knowing the right words, for always protecting me. I haven't met a single soul as brave and great as you are." She snuggled closer to Scorpius. "I think we should spontaneously go on a vacation. Just the two of us. Not tomorrow, but in a few days. After I've spent some time with my family and after I've visited Al. Will James be here soon?"

"I suppose so. He had a date tonight. The first one in ages. Bless his soul. Ava really did break his heart. But since he's gone for quite a while now, I guess it's going well and he's enjoying himself. I hope so."

"Yeah, he sounded bloody heartbroken last time I got a letter from him. Poor James. Two years and she just ripped his heart out; she just humiliated him in front of everyone." She sighed and took Scorpius' hand in hers. "If it went badly, he'll come home with something to drink and we'll drink with him. And then I'll sleep here and we will go on a nice vacation. Where do you want to go?"

"Hm... you've come around. What would you suggest?"

"Azerbaijan is beautiful but fucked up. Italy is too close, Russia too cold. Iran and Egypt were both amazing countries. But I want to go somewhere I haven't been before. I want a new experience with you. A first time we can have together. We had so many first times together."

"Small ones, yes. But nonetheless important." Scorpius smiled softly. "Since you are an adventurer and I could use some adventures in my life, I would love to go to South America. People say, Ecuador is the best country for adventurer."

"So Ecuador it is. We can split it up. Have one week adventure, one week calm vacation. Or adventure, vacation, adventure, vacation. So that there is always time to rest."

"Sounds amazing."

"There you are! I've been searching for you everywhere! Well, just in the flat, but hey, I'm one for big entrances", James smiled as he entered the rooftop, "glad to have you back, my love."

"Hello!" Rose jumped up and hugged James happily, "so how did it go? Your date."

"It was nice, yes. She seemed to be genuinely nice and interested. We'll meet again on Friday. So I am quite happy now. And as happy as I am, I won't bother you too much. How was the day with Cassie?"

"It was amazing! She is so cute and I love her so much. And spending the day with her and Scorp was just..."

"It felt like family?" James suggested and smiled softly, "so, you two, have fun the rest of the evening. I'll be in my bed, smiling like a madman, because the evening was just splendid."

Rose and Scorpius waited until James was back in the flat, until they burst out laughing.

"Well, I guess he is love-drunk, isn't he?"Rose giggled. Scorpius nodded in agreement.

"He is so love-drunk, it is actually really cute. Love must be so great."

"I suppose it is." She grinned and sat down next to Scorpius, cuddling up against him.

"Rosie?" he said after a while of mutual and comfortable silence.

"Mhm?"

"We should marry each other."


	27. Resolutions

Rose had had some pretty good months in Scotland. The Merpeople were nicer than she'd ever thought! They helped her settle in and get to know the Hippocampi. Of course, Rose hadn't lived with them under water, but in a camp next to the lake, where other researchers lived. Everyone had been really nice to her, supporting her when she didn't know what to do, praising her when she did something well.

On her last evening there, she was laying in the grass next to the lake, watching some young Hippocampi playing in the water, jumping in and out.

"Hey there. The others told me I'd be able to find you here."

"Oh, hey Jules. Sit down" Rose smiled at her.

"I just wanted to ask you about your next steps. We haven't really had time to talk about that, had we?"

"Not really, no." During the last few months, Rose and Jules had become quite good friends. Jules knew about Rose's struggle with her future and about how confusing everything was to her. She knew how much she missed her family and her best friend. She knew how much Rose missed the danger and the beasts, the diversity.

"So, what are you going to do?"

"Well, first of all, I'll go to Greece to get to know the Hippocampi in their natural habit. And after that... I am not sure. I've told you about Scorpius, haven't I? About my best friend?"

"You did, yes. What about him?"

"He'll be doing an internship in Greece. Starting next week. We'll travel there together and live in the same flat and everything. I am really excited about it, because I love spending time with him. He's the best."

"He's more than your best friend, isn't he?" Jules inquired, "does he know you feel that way?"

"I don't feel that way. If I would, he would know it. There were times when I thought I did and times when he thought he did. We have told each other about that and it's clear."

"Rose. I am a woman, you are a woman. I see your eyes when you talk about him. Even if you are not in love with him, there is something more."

"There is." Rose sighed heavily before she continued, "he asked me to marry him."

"He what?" Jules looked at her, completely dazzled. "What did you say? Did you say yes? Tell me all about it!"

"Okay, let me tell you the whole story. It started when I was visiting him before this internship. We had a nice evening, until: _"Rosie?" he said after a while of mutual and comfortable silence._

"_Mhm?"_

"_We should marry each other."_

"_We should what?"I looked at him, startled, "what gave you that idea?"_

"_Well", he continued, looking a bit embarrassed, "I think we are meant to be. Think about it, Rose. Whenever I was with someone, I always compared her to you. Telling myself 'Rose wouldn't want you to change. Rose wouldn't tell you this or that'. Even when she wore a dress, I would about how it would look on you."_

"_I had quite similar experiences" I told him, "whenever a man was just remotely interested in me, I would compare him to you, look at his flaws and discover that you would always be better than him. No matter what he would do, he could never live up to my image of you."_

"So you're basically in love with each other?" Jules wanted to know, "at least it sounds like it."

"It sounds like it, true. But there is more to the story."

"Okay, please continue."

Rose giggled and nodded in agreement: _"But I don't know if it is love", I told him, "it doesn't feel like it. I feel safe with you, yes. I want to be with you, yes. But as lovers? I don't know. I don't feel like anyone described love. There are no butterflies, no dizziness, no sick stomach. Nothing."_

"_I don't feel like my parents told me love feels like, either. But still, there is something between us. I can see it in your eyes."_

_I sighed but nodded. He was so right. There was something more. More than friendship but less than love. Less than a crush. "Okay. Say there is something. Say we feel that way. Maybe it is a different way of love we feel. I know one thing: spending the rest of my life with you sounds like a great idea. But as husband and wife? I don't know."_

"_So what do you say? Will you marry me?"_

"So what did you say? Rose, tell me!"

Rose was just about to answer her friend, as someone called her name.

"Rose! Hey, I thought you had already left."

"I haven't. Come on, sit down with us, Henry."

He did, placing himself between Jules and Rose.

"Why did you think I had left? I'm leaving tomorrow."

"Well, I thought that you might have headed home already, to see your family. We all know how important family is to you as a Weasley."

"Thank you for only seeing me as my family name. Just fuck off, Henry. I don't need that kind of shit. I really don't."

"But you are your name. We all are. You just have a very special name."

Rose jumped up, angry, her face furious with rage. "Do not ever call me Weasley again. Never ever. Did you understand that?" She shook her head of red curls, stomping away. Rose was sick of it. She had thought, after Hogwarts, it would be over with it. She did not want to put up with being reduced to her name again. Not at an internship which she got by herself, because of all her other achievements. Not because of her name, because of what her parents did or did not do. Angry, Rose went into her room, packing up the rest of her belongings.

"Are you alright, Rose, my dear?" Jules hesitantly asked her friend.

"I am just so sick of it. Why does everyone keep doing this? Why can't I be more than my surname?"

"You are so much more. Henry is just hurt because whenever he tried to flirt with you, you blew him off. Every time. And when he asked you if you have a boyfriend and you denied it, he was even angrier. You see, he thinks he is the greatest, the best, and the most handsome. He wants you and he can't take it that you don't want him. That is why he wants to hurt you so badly."

"He doesn't have to hurt me just to get his revenge. I am so happy that I'll be gone tomorrow. Away from Henry. He is nice, actually. I really do like him and he is amazing with the Hippocampi. But he can be a total git."

"I know he can. To be honest, I had a thing for him when I first arrived two years ago. And we had a few shared nights..."

"Oho." Rose giggled. "Nice! Was he any good?"

"To be honest: I had had better lovers. I never told him. If I had, he would be a git to me as well."

Rose laughed and shook her head. "You are unbelievable!"

"Have you never done anything you regretted? I certainly did regret sleeping with him. You never did that?"

"Well, I slept with Scorpius, but..."

"You did?! Why? What? When? After he proposed?"

"He didn't really propose. It was more of a thought. But no, before. We made a plan to sleep with each other on our Graduation Day, if we are both single. So we did. We did it afterwards, too. During the three years I have been round the world. Couple of times."

"How was it? If you are not in love with him and stuff. And... sleeping with my best friend... that sounds really awkward and weird."

"It wasn't. It was great. We both loved it. Best sex of our lives. But I didn't feel love."

"So what did you say? Did you agree to marry him? Please, I need the end of the story before you leave."

"I lend you a comfy pyjama, you cuddle up in bed with me and I tell you what happened next, okay?"

"Sounds like a plan", Jules smiled and did as she was told. Quite happily, she listened to Rose's story, with a cup of tea in her hand and some ice cream to share.

Scorpius was very eager to go to Greece. He was eager to learn new ways of healing, to be in a foreign country with a foreign culture. And above all, he was eager to live with Rose, even if it was only for a short time. After that, their ways would be parted again. It didn't matter. As long as Rose was happy, he would be. With or without her. They were best friends. No-one could take that away from them.

"There you are" he grinned as the Weasleys finally arrived at the meeting point.

"Rose was a bit nervous. You know, Port Keys are not her way of travelling" Ron grinned, winking at Scorpius, "make sure you take good care of her after you've arrived, okay? You are a healer and she tends to get sick."

"I promise. Don't worry, Rose will be fine."

"Glad to hear that." Ron stared at him for a while, not in a bad way, though. He was completely positive that Scorpius would do everything to keep his daughter safe. He just didn't want the boy to be too friendly with her. If he only knew, how friendly they had ready been with each other.  
>After Rose said hello to Cassiopeia and played with her for a while, it was time to get to the Port Key.<p>

"By the way, did Ginny tell you that Albus is moving in with James, as long as my son is in Greece?"

"Really?" Hermione wondered, "that's odd. I can't imagine them living together... I thought Al had already started working at Gringotts and was in his own flat."

"Burned down yesterday" Scorpius informed them, "he came yesterday evening and since there was a spare room from today on, I was quite glad to have someone in my room in order to not pay the rent."

"And you know I never understood why you didn't search for someone in the first place."

"Mum, we have discussed that" Scorpius sighed. He couldn't stand someone he didn't know living in his room, with all his personal things. And he earned good money, didn't need to pay for the flat in Greece, because the hospital financed it. James was glad to be on his own, with his new girlfriend, so why should he look for someone? But Albus was a good choice. Payed for the rent and James was really excited to live with his baby brother.

"Shall we go then?" Rose wanted to know. The sooner it was over, the better.

Since she was very pale and trembled a bit, Scorpius softly grabbed her hand and squeezed it.

"It's going to be fine, Pumpkin Pie. Don't worry."

"I don't. I love adventures. But I might throw up once we've reached our destination." She smiled a crooked smile, stopping in front of the old tea pot, which was supposed to be their Port Key.

"Rose, take that." Scorpius handed his best friend a small flask.

"What is that?"

"A potion. It will make you feel better during the journey and after we landed. Trust me."

She nodded slightly, taking one big sip. "Doesn't taste as bad as I thought. A bit like cranberry. See, Daddy, Scorpius takes good care of me" Rose smiled at her father.

"I know." Ron hugged his daughter and Scorpius, waving his good-bye with the others.

Scorpius had been right. Once they were in Greece, Rose felt a lot better than any other time she'd traveled with a Port Key.

"Told you it would help" he grinned at her, hugging Rose softly, "you are alright, aren't you?"

"I am, thank you." She hugged him back, resting her head against his chest. "So we'll be living together now. I allow you to pick which room you want to have."

"Thank you", he laughed, kissing her forehead before letting go of her. "I want the one next to the bathroom."

"Okay, no problem. Then I have the one next to the kitchen. This is gonna be awesome!"

"Of course it is" Scorpius smiled, "two best friends sharing a flat is the definition of awesome."

"Yeah, two best friends" Rose nodded.

"So we are going to stick to the plan?"

"Of course we are. What happened between us, what has been said, what has been thought, that is to be between us and not to be shared with the family."

"Okay, fine." Scorpius smiled softly, kissing her cheek, "let's just hope that the next few months won't be weird as fuck."

"I still can't get over the fact of you using curse words." The red-head giggled and let herself fall onto the sofa in the living room. "Come on, sit next to me and tell me about what will happen to you and what you'll be doing."

Scorpius smiled and kissed her forehead, sitting next to her. "Well, as I will be with your team and with the Healer responsible for the campsite, I guess I'll get a pretty good insight into water related incidents and accidents, into wounds caused by Hippocampi and other water creatures. That is going to be really interesting, as I have never done something similar before. How did you like the Hippocampi anyway?"

"They are amazing! I have to see them here, where they actually live in the wild, not captured and tamed. It will be bloody amazing! But I have decided against working with them in the future. I need furry and feathery animals."

"So the plan from before is still on the table?"

"Yes. It means a lot to me, so I'll stick to that. We have agreed on it and I know it is the right decision. I feel it, Scorp. I finally feel that soon I am where I want to be."

"And I am forever grateful for that."


	28. The Grand Finale

The day Rose and Scorpius came back from Greece was the day they decided to hold a welcome-home-party. As soon as Hermione and Ron touched ground, the brunette looked around. She was a bit confused, as they were in the middle of some forest, on a small clearance. Everything was covered in snow, except the clearance itself.

"Cool, isn't it?" Rose beamed at her mum, "I learned the spell in Russia. We cleared away the snow to build our camp, because otherwise we would have frozen to death!" The red-head smiled and hugged her parents. "The others will be here soon."

"Who is invited then? The whole lot?" Ron inquired and waved at Scorpius, as he saw the young man standing next to a chocolate fountain.

"Yes, everyone! Everyone Potter, every Weasley, every Longbottom, every Malfoy, every Scamander. The whole lot!"

A few moments later, everyone had arrived at the party. Hermione was very proud of her daughter. Constructing such a strong spell was quite hard. But then again, Rose was the daughter of the brightest witch of her age. Of course she was a strong and powerful witch. As her son was a strong and powerful wizard.

The scene was really beautiful, like a painting. The snow-covered trees and hills were magical, marvellous. Hermione thought that Rose and Scorpius had decorated the green spot in the middle really nicely. There were floating candles and lanterns everywhere and the setting sun coloured everything beautifully. It shone so red that Scorpius had nearly the same hair-colour as Rose and even Rose's white summer dress was painted in a bright orange. Her baby girl had actually grown up into a woman. And Scorpius didn't look that bad, either. What was the word again? A hipster? Hermione thought that would be correct. Black shorts, a white shirt with a bow-tie. That was a hipster, wasn't it? He looked a bit like James, clothing-wise. Only plain, never plaid or striped and no glasses.

"So, now that you are all gathered, we would like to tell you something. This isn't just a welcome-home-Rose-and-Scorpius party..."

"Oh, don't tell me you're off again" sighed Albus, "we have hardly seen you in the least four years."

"Al is right" James joined his brother, "we would love to see more of you, Rosie."

Hermione sighed, too. Yes, she would also love to have her daughter around some more, to spend time with her. But it was Rose and Rose was an adventurer, with which Hermione was fine, of course. She needed to find herself, to find her place in life. Hermione did, too. After the war, after the grieving, the time she and Ron had spent in Australia has been some of the most important in their life. They weren't under the constant pressure to be part of the Golden Trio anymore. They were allowed to be normal seventeen year olds.

"No, I am not heading off again, don't worry" Rose smiled, "well, actually Scorpius and me will be off again but only two weeks. Actually, I am going to stay in Hogsmeade. Because I have decided that I want to work with Hippogriffs and the best country for that is England. That is what I am going to do."

"Really?" Hugo smiled at her, "that is great! So you'll be around and we can meet up and meet with Al and James and everyone!"

"Yes, we can do that. No problem at all!" she beamed back at her brother, "and I think that living in Hogsmeade will be awesome."

"Oh yes. Because Rose and me, we will rent a flat together. As Rose said, this isn't only a welcoming-party" Scorpius smiled at the round, "This is also our wedding."

Hermione could feel her husband tensing. This was not the way he would have liked to get such information. Neither did Hermione. Her daughter was marrying? Now? Well, that she was going to marry Scorpius was the best thing that could happen to her, but still. Why didn't she tell her about it? Hermione searched for Astoria, who was equally shocked, excited and also happy for their kids.

"Please don't let her be pregnant. Please don't be pregnant, please don't" Hermione could hear her husband mumble, "please don't. And if, please let it be Scorpius' kid, please..."

"No, Dad, I am not pregnant" Rose smirked. Damn, she had the hearing of a bat, Ron thought, his eyes turning pink from embarrassment. "We just want to marry each other. That is about it. Took us a while to figure that out, though. Didn't it?"

"Took _you _a while to figure that out" Scorpius grinned and kissed her forehead, "I was way ahead of you this time."

"Yeah, once in your life", the red-head teased him lovingly.

Hermione tried hard to contain her emotions. They acted so similar to Ron and herself and yet so different. Their teasing was teasing, not bickering. It was pure bliss to look at her daughter's face whenever her eyes wandered over to Scorpius.

"We would like to ask James and Al to be our best men. Because well... you're family, my best friends, Rose' cousins, you're basically everything to us. Would you do us the favour?"

"Oh yes, of course!" James jumped up and quickly hugged his best friends, smiling very brightly from one ear to another. "I'd never thought this day would ever come! Merlin, I am so damn happy for you two! And for me, because I won a bet, but anyway, let's get you two married!"

"Hold on, James. Which bet? With whom?" Rose lightly poked her cousin in his chest. "With whom about what and what's the price?"

"Well, you see... sort of with everyone?" James smiled to the ground, a bit embarrassed. "Your cousins and your brother, all of us, we each threw in a tenner. The bet was about you two getting married. And I was the one to say that you would get married unexpectedly. Which you do. Hugo said you'd get married after being a proper couple for at least five years; Lily even said at least ten years! And Dom reckoned it would be after the birth of your first child. But hey, I get all the money now, which is quite a lot. We started the bet right after your Graduation Ball. And every time something was proved wrong – like Louis' idea that you would get married within the first year after graduation – the person to get it wrong had to add another fifty pounds. So I am gonna be rather rich now and I'm gonna give you some of the money. But not much. Maybe I sponsor a dinner for the pair of you."

"You bet on our marriage?" Rose stared at her cousin, before beginning to smile. "You are incredible, you are, unbelievable!" She laughed and hugged him tightly. "So come on then boys, let's get married."

"Do we have to say anything? Because I didn't prepare a speech. How could I? I didn't even know you would marry! You two will be my death one day, I swear to Merlin, you will be."

"Oh stop being such a drama queen, James. Just stand next to Scorpius and listen and smile and be proud."

"I am always proud of the two of you", James smiled, pecking his cousin's cheek, "go on then. Who is marrying you? Did you bring a priest or whatever?"

"We brought your uncle." Scorpius smiled as everyone stared at them blankly. Well, the kids did, but Hermione and the other adults knew what they meant. Charlie was going to wed them. In Romania, he once got a license after losing a drunk bet and every now and then, Charlie still married couples. It had been Rose's wish to be married by him, because she has always been very close to him, closer than to any other uncle.

It was really a nice idea, Hermione thought. With her hand still on Ron's leg, she watched as Rose and Scorpius stood in front of a pumpkin juice fountain, holding each other's hands. The looks on their faces were priceless. Hermione knew that her husband thought the same. They were so in love. So young and so in love. How did that happen? When did it happen? A few months ago, they were nothing but the best of friends and now they were attending their wedding. Their baby girl's wedding.

"Dearly beloved, today we are here because of something that took us by surprise as it should take everyone by surprise: love. We are here to celebrate young love and the true meaning of overcoming old prejudices. I reckon you have prepared some vows for each other?" Charlie asked the couple.

"Sort of... we said we would but I forgot..." Rose admitted.

Scorpius chuckled and kissed her forehead before he started talking: "So I just start and improvise a bit, because I, too, forgot. Which isn't that bad, because that's what we do. We improvise, we take risks. You more than me, but with marrying me you take the biggest risk ever: the risk to get lost in love. Just like I got lost in everything we have. Yes, at the beginning you couldn't figure out that it was actually love, that I am meant to be with you, that you are meant to complete me, to save me, to shield me. You can be a bit oblivious to the obvious and I love that about you. What counts is that right here and right now, I know I love you from the depths of my heart, with every cell of my body, with every thought I have ever had and will ever have. Together we are flawless. And our life will be flawless. It might have its ups and downs, but the perks of being you and me is that whatever we touch becomes the most flawless, most perfect thing I ever had in my entire life. It might just be a badly painted wall, burned Chinese food or an awkward conversation about something. As long as I share all those things with you, they become flawless and perfect, as I become flawless with you and helpless without you. You are my little adventurer, the one who keeps me going, the one who dares me to try things I have never even dreamed of thinking about. You not only complete me, no. You form me, you make me who I am today, you accept me for who I was and will be. You bring life into my existence. I promise to be there for you whenever you need me. This might be a really cliché-thing to say at a wedding but like hell I mean it. The really important thing I have to say is: good thing you didn't listen to your dad and stayed away from me. I would have missed everything what makes my life liveable and I wouldn't even have known what I was missing out on."

Rose looked at Scorpius, a look of awe plastered on her face. "Do you even know how much I love you?" she whispered softly, on the verge of crying, before kissing him lovingly. "So so much." Tears streamed down her face and for once Scorpius wasn't uncomfortable or hurt seeing her cry. He was proud as he kissed her back, proud to be the only one for her.

"Well, you are not supposed to kiss each other just yet, but to hell with it", Charlie grinned, "Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy, do you promise to be true to Rose in good times and in bad, in health and in sickness, in times when she is more busy being a baby-Hippogriff's foster mum than being your lawfully wedded wife, for richer, for worse, for poorer until death does part you?"

"I promise", Scorpius smiled and chuckled a little, as Rose tried to get the ring on his finger. Her hands were shaking from nervousness and she looked as if she was about to faint.

"Rose Nymphadora Weasley, do you promise to be true to Scorpius in good times and in bad, in health and in sickness, in times when he is loaded with work and busy healing people rather than being your lawfully wedded husband, for richer, for worse, for poorer until death does part you?"

"I promise", Rose sobbed as Scorpius put the wedding ring on her finger, "oh, I do promise."

"I hereby pronounce you husband and wife. And now you are allowed to kiss each other. Guys, let us give a big round of applause for Mr and Mrs Malfoy."

Without losing another second, Rose grabbed her husband by his collar, practically smashing her lips onto his. Their families started cheering and whistling and applauding. After what seemed to be ages, Rose finally let go of a rather breathless Scorpius just to be hugged by Albus and James at the same time. A second later, Rose was completely covered in Potters and Weasleys and Malfoys to congratulate her, to hug and kiss her. It took her a while to get adjust to everything and to stop crying.

"Well, now that I am married, I can get fat. I'd say let's eat."

The tables at the side of the clearing were suddenly full of every food her family loved. Everything they could have desired.

While Scorpius was talking to James at the buffet, Hermione and Ron took the chance to talk to their daughter in private.

"So... how did all of this happen then?" Ron asked carefully.

"You mean how we fell in love?" Rose smiled and kissed her dad's cheek. "I am not sure. It started before I went to Scotland. I visited Scorp in his flat and he said we should get married. I was a bit baffled, to be honest. It came out of the blue but he said that I should just think about it. Because whenever he was with someone else, he always compared her to me, always thought about me. I did the same. When I was with a guy, he could never ever live up to Scorpius. But was it love? Scorp said we were meant to be but by then I wasn't sure about it. I didn't feel like you all told me love feels like and neither did Scorpius. But there has always been _something_. Something special. Something more than friendship but less than love. We talked about it. Talked about how we feel about the significant other, talked about how we would love to spend our time with each other as we grow old. And then I told him that I would love trying to have a relationship and that I would love to marry him. Since I was in Scotland, I saw him nearly every weekend, sometimes even on weekdays. We kissed like a couple but it wasn't until we had spent half of our time in Greece that it suddenly hit me. We shared a flat with separated bedrooms. I slept in his bed nearly every night, especially when I came home from a long and hard day late at night. One morning after such a night, I woke up next to him and I knew it. Out of the blue, I felt it. I felt what you always told me. I looked at Scorpius and I just knew. He had those feelings long before, I knew. He had told me the second it had hit him, while I was eating a strawberry yoghurt on the roof of his flat one evening. I woke him up and just beamed at him. And he knew. He looked me in the eyes, for a split-second, and he knew. We actually decided to marry about three weeks ago. And I know it will last forever."

Hermione smiled at her and hugged her daughter. "I am so happy for you. It really was a surprise, but the best we have ever had."

"Well... I get myself something to eat then. Congrats again, Rosie." Ron awkwardly kissed the top of Rose's head and made his way to the buffet, where Scorpius was just about to leave. "A word with you, please, Scorpius", he smiled at the young man.

"Oh, okay, of course." To be honest, Scorpius was really nervous. He knew Ron liked him but he had just married his daughter and that was something completely different than being her best friend. Her platonic best friend.

"So, I have two questions. First: Why Malfoy and not Weasley?"

"Because I am the only male Malfoy but the Weasleys have lots of people to carry on the name. We actually thought about becoming the Weasleys, but Rose said that she would love to be a Malfoy, to be as loving as my mum, as much of a fighter as my dad and as forgiving as my grandma. She wanted to be a Malfoy to show everyone that a name does not define who you are and who you are going to be. She wanted to be Rose Nymphadora Malfoy to have two heroines and one hero in one person: herself, who lived her life as desired, Nymphadora Tonks, who died for love and for a greater good, who was fun and clumsy and free of any stereotype, free of fear, and my dad, who loves his family very much and is the perfect example of a lost child which found his way home, no matter how dangerous and huge the obstacles were."

Ron nodded and was quiet for a second. "Okay, I can totally accept that. And she is the first auburn Malfoy, whereas there are already blond, part-Veela Weasleys. And what is the plan now?"

"The plan is that we move together. We have our eye on a small flat at the border of Hogsmeade. It is right on the top floor of an old Victorian house, with a huge round window in the living room. Chances are good that we get the flat. I work as a healer at St. Mungo's, Rose works with Hippogriffs in the UK. Once we have some more money, we will be travelling the world for maybe be a year or two, depending on how much money we have. It will be more like Work&Travel, we decided. And after that, we are going to buy ourselves a cute little cottage with a porch and a winter garden, with an alley of orange and lemon trees through which our two or three or four kids have to go to reach the Quidditch field. The plan is to have a small shed in the backyard to store the Muggle gardening tools and the Quidditch brooms. The plan is for her to stay home until the second child comes and for me to stay home until the third one comes. The plan is that we both work, because we love our work. Rose said that her plan in particular is to actually be a foster mum for Hippogriff cubs, so that she can raise them at home and still be with the kids, although it would be no problem for me to become a stay-at-home-dad later on. I plan on taking the first year after our first baby off, so that we can adjust to the new situation together. She will probably work half-time that year. We also plan on buying a dog and naming it Fluffy and a cat, which will be named Errol. When the kids are all in school, we want to travel to where we haven't been before. That is the plan so far."

Ron nodded, slowly, trying to comprehend everything Scorpius had just told him. He was just about to say something as Rose approached the pair of them.

"Dad, may I kidnap my husband, please?"

"Of course you may, Rosie." Ron kissed her forehead and hugged his daughter before making his way back to his wife. He stood still next to Hermione, watching the newly-weds, watching how they looked at each other.

"You do trust him, don't you?"

"Of course I do", Ron said softly. He smiled as Rose wiped off a bit of cream on Scorpius' chin, smiled at the look she threw him because she looked so much like Ron himself when he first realized how much he loved Hermione. "Of course I trust Scorpius. I always trust family."


End file.
